Green light for major Leeds shopping centre
Work will begin later this year on the stalled 1,000,000 sq ft Trinity Leeds shopping centre, developer Land Securities confirmed yesterday.
According to The Guardian, the £350m project is the first major retail-led development in the UK to be approved since the global financial crisis took hold. Development had started on the Boar Lane site, but was stopped in 2009 as the recession worsened.
Yorkshire Post report that tenants have been secured for almost 50 per cent of the development, which is set to play an important role in the regeneration of Leeds city centre.
"We hope to change the dynamics of this whole area and provide a true destination in its own right," Gerald Jennings of Land Securities told the Yorkshire Post.
The Trinity Leeds centre will employ around 3,000 retail staff when it finally opens in in Spring 2013, and will house major high street retailers such as Marks & Spencer, Topshop, Boots and H&M.
The project will also provide the region's construction recruitment industry with a timely boost. More than 1,000 workers will be employed during the building process, and local suppliers should benefit from a surge in demand for building materials.
Ian Williams, director of policy at Leeds, York and North Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce, was delighted to hear that work would soon restart on the site.
He told The Guardian: "This is fantastic news for Leeds and something which the business community have been supportive of throughout.
"It is a massive boost for the city and the local construction industry," he added.
Author: Joseph Jeffries
Keywords: construction recruitment