THE people in charge of redeveloping Northampton town centre have admitted plans for the Grosvenor Centre's expansion, originally published back in 2000, are now effectively "dead", but insisted a new scheme is close to becoming a reality.

The multi-million-pound scheme published eight years ago would have seen a new department store, seven 'flagship outlets' and 50 smaller shops built in an extension to the centre which would have been the size of seven football pitches.

It was originally hoped work on the expansion would be completed in 2005.

But now, three years after the deadline, Northampton Borough Council's cabinet member for regeneration, Councillor Richard Church (Lib Dem, Kingsthorpe) has said the old scheme "died" in 2006.

He said: "The old scheme ran into the sand and was dead. So two years ago, the borough council and Legal & General, who own the centre, drew up a new scheme which started from scratch again.

"So it's wrong for people to think this has been going on since 2000, it's better for people to judge it from 2006, when we started work on the new plans."

These would still see the dilapidated Greyfriars bus station demolished.

It is thought it would be replaced by a series of new bus stops throughout the town and a specially-designed interchange running along Lady's Lane.

The expanded shopping centre would also be designed to attract a number of large stores which are currently not based in Northampton.

Plans for the new scheme are believed to reflect a study published by the borough council in June this year, which claimed the turnover of Northampton's shops would fall by almost 30 per cent if the Grosvenor Centre was not expanded.

The study, which called for "urgent action" to improve the town, said the £348 million spent in Northampton town centre every year would drop to £250 million if the expansion did not happen.

In contrast, the report showed retail in the town would increase by 6.5 per cent if the centre was expanded and a massive 37 per cent if the rest of the town was also improved.

Councillor Church said this was why the authority was keen to push on, not only with the Grosvenor Centre expansion, but also improvements to Abington Street, Derngate and the St John's areas of the town.

He said: "The redevelopment of the Grosvenor Centre and the bus station will represent the biggest ever private investment in our town centre throughout its entire history.

"That takes time to negotiate and plan but it will deliver the space we need for the major retailers we need for our town centre.

"We would expect to see an expanded Grosvenor Centre provide space for major new department stores.

"We will work with Legal & General to help them attract high-quality tenants.

"One of the reasons we do not have some of the major high street names found elsewhere is because the current Grosvenor Centre simply does not have the size of shop units those names expect.

"As the town grows though, it will become increasingly attractive to major high street retailers."

Negotiations progress for future
Top level negotiations between the borough council and Legal & General are known to be progressing and, despite a number of false dawns in the past, positive news on the centre's expansion is expected soon.

Councillor Richard Church said: "Things are progressing well and both the borough council and Legal & General are committing considerable staff resources into completing negotiations.

"I have every confidence that we will reach a conclusion soon.

But it is going to be a while before anything happens on site.

"Even if we reached an agreement tomorrow, we'd then have to sort out all the road and traffic implications and plan alternative improvements for the bus station.

"All of that is going to take time.

It's going to be some years before the first brick is laid and then it will take several years to build, but it will be completed.

"We are hoping for a major announcement soon.

If Legal & General did not have confidence in the town centre in the current economic climate they would have pulled out of negotiations months ago."

While shoppers wait for the Grosvenor Centre project to take shape, both the borough council and the West Northamptonshire Development Corporation (WNDC) hope improvements will be made to Gold Street, Abington Street and the Market Square.

Councillor Church said: "It's not decided yet, but we'd like to see Abington Street improved after Gold Street.

"It's the town's main shopping street and it needs upgrading with new paving and better benches, like the ones we're going to see in Gold Street."

He was backed by the interim chairman of the WNDC, John Weir, who said he had no doubt the Grosvenor Centre would be expanded, but it must only be seen as one part of the jigsaw.

He said: "Given the times we find ourselves in at the moment, we can't expect the Grosvenor Centre to be done tomorrow.

"With the economic climate as it is, projects like this are getting more difficult.

But we have to be sure that when things do improve we have everything in place. So now is actually the perfect time to do all the groundwork.

"But we need to think not just about the Grosvenor Centre, but the town as a whole and the city it wants to become.

What's happening in Gold Street now is really just the start.

There are lots of things that need doing in the town. The Grosvenor Centre is just one."

Traders have agreed the entire town centre needs looking at as a whole, along with the Grosvenor Centre.

Businessman John Sheinman owns an opticians at the top of Abington Street and is a member of the Northampton Town Centre Commission, which was set up to look into ways of improving the town.

He said: "We want to have an updated Grosvenor Centre, but money should also be invested in Abington Street.

"It's a unique and important thoroughfare, but it's been going downhill almost since it was pedestrianised."

Meanwhile Legal & General is playing its cards close to its chest on the whole Grosvenor Centre plan.

To date, no images of the 2006 scheme have been published and the insurance giant this week issued a one-line statement on its current position on the scheme, insisting negotiations between the firm and the council were "progressing well".