Croydon town centre redevelopment gets green light

The redevelopment of Croydon town centre was given the green light this week, with the approval of the town’s planning committee secured.

Following three years of discussions, since the design was first proposed, the regeneration will be backed by both the UK government and international investor support. Numerous meetings have been held by Minister for London Greg Hands at the Department for International Trade, to encourage and secure global investment in the town.

The final proposals were put to the planning committee after a series of meetings chaired by the Minister for London, where Croydon Council, Westfield and the Greater London Authority (GLA), along with all three of Croydon’s MPs, agreed the funding needed to move the project forwards.

The Westfield Group will now undertake the redevelopment of Whitgift, joining Stratford and Shepherd’s Bush as a one of the company’s 17 shopping centres worldwide. The Australian group has committed a massive £700M to the redevelopment, to create a global retail destination.

Construction work is set to commence in 2018, creating 7,000 new jobs and 1,000 new homes for the borough.

Minister for London Greg Hands said: “I am delighted that after convening two meetings of all concerned parties, here at the Department for International Trade, we will now see construction taking place. This major redevelopment of the Whitgift site will bring huge benefits to Croydon and London with thousands of new homes and jobs.

“This is a great example of local and central government working together with private investors, and as Minister for London I’m delighted to be supporting the project, and seeing it secure planning approval.

“As Minister for Trade it is also yet another example of London and the UK’s appeal to international investors, bringing much-needed regeneration projects to life. Croydon will join locations across the world, from San Francisco to Sydney, with a flagship Westfield site, once again proving London’s enduring strength as a leading global retail destination.”

This project is just one example of the 891 developments agreed this year in London that are being backed by foreign direct investment.

 

 

If you would like to read more articles like this then please click here.

The post Croydon town centre redevelopment gets green light appeared first on UK Construction Online.