The next 18 months to two years will see Stockport town centre change beyond recognition as multi-million-pound projects take shape. By 2018, we should have a great retail offering, two new hotels, a business district and a town centre that people want to come to and can move around.
But that’s not all. Over the next five to seven years around £900m will be ploughed into projects across Stockport, bringing 5,000 jobs and over 1,000 new homes.
Redrock development, next to Debenhams and alongside the M60, will see an investment of an estimated £45m bringing a 320-space car park, restaurants and cafes, new shops, and a 10-screen Light Cinema.
Over at the station, Stockport Exchange, with the council in partnership with Muse Developments and Eric Wright Construction, will result in a new commercial district. .
The Stockport Exchange scheme, an investment from the council and partners of £145m, will include a 115-bed Holiday Inn Express hotel, a five-storey office building with ground floor retail space, and a new public space outside Stockport train station providing a new gateway to the town centre.
Stockport has always lacked hotel beds, but that is about to change as Travelodge is also opening, this time in Regent House on Heaton Lane with a further 88 beds.
Over £73m has been invested in the Stockport Town Centre Access package and work on the new £42m Transport Interchange is due to begin in 2016, with the aim of making life better for workers, shoppers and commuters. The final phase of the Town Centre Access plan will be completed by 2020.
Transport links
The schemes will see the bus station replaced by the new Interchange that will be Metrolink-ready and will link buses and trains. Road widening around the M60 and A6 will ease congestion. Pedestrians and cyclists will also see improvements, especially around Redrock and Stockport Exchange.
Councillor Patrick McAuley, Executive Member for Thriving Economy at Stockport Council, said:
“Our Investing in Stockport programme will see Stockport town centre transformed over the next five years as around £900m is invested into ambitious projects, by ourselves and partners.
“Each of these projects will see Stockport building on its town’s strengths so that it can continue to grow in the future.
“Work has already begun and great progress is being made including the development of new town centre homes at Hopes Carr and Covent Garden and the start of construction at Stockport Exchange.
“Transport improvements works aimed at making it easier for everyone to travel in Stockport have also begun.
“Other investments will include Redrock Stockport, the new Aurora Stockport industrial development, and initiatives to boost the Old Town area of the town centre.
“There is little doubt that these developments will unlock even more of Stockport’s potential, creating an exciting environment in which businesses can continue to thrive.”
To complement the new builds, another £7m will be spent on within the Old Town, Underbanks and market areas.
The scheme hopes to ‘create a vibrant hub for independent retailers and the creative industries’ with the money being spent up to 2019.
The changing face of Stockport:
- Redrock – due to open in 2017, 75,000 sq ft leisure and retail development in the heart of Stockport town centre including 320 space multi-storey car park
- Stockport Exchange – due to open in 2017, office space, hotel, retail and leisure space, and car parking
- Town Centre Access – Phase 1 due to be completed in 2017, Phase 2 in 2020, development
- plan seeking to improve access within Stockport town centre by all methods of travel and ease congestion for buses and general road traffic
- Stockport Interchange – plans out to consultation
- Market Place and Underbanks – £7m to be spent from 2015-19, attracting new businesses and uses will help increase visitor numbers and footfall helping to secure the future of this key area
This article by Paul Harrison first appeared in Stockportal