Bolton secures £250m to transform shopping centre

Bolton Council has confirmed in principle more than £250m of investment to transform the Crompton Place shopping centre into a new state-of-the-art retail and leisure complex.

The local authority bought the shopping centre in June for £14.8m to help kickstart its £1bn town centre regeneration masterplan.

Now the council has secured the involvement of Bolton Regeneration Limited (BRL), a private consortium led by investment and development specialist, Midia.

And the consortium has in turn secured ‘strong interest’ from a number of major institutional investors and this week agreed heads of terms with Beijing Construction and Engineering Group International (BCEGI).

According to the council, a formal announcement will be made in the autumn. 

The final selection of the preferred investor will be made in conjunction with Bolton Council and its property advisors.

‘This is a fantastic vote of confidence in our town and in our council,’ said council leader, Cllr Linda Thomas. 

‘It enables us to move forward with the delivery of our masterplan and will act as a catalyst for other developments across our borough.

‘I look forward to being able to make further announcements about the investment later in the year.’

The council’s deputy leader, Cllr Ebrahim Adia, added: ‘The investment will generate significant economic benefits not only for Bolton but also for the wider Northern Powerhouse region, with the potential to create new jobs for our residents. There is a lot of detailed work that now needs to be undertaken but there is no doubt that this is an exciting time for Bolton.”

The council’s cabinet gave approval for the replacement of Crompton Place and the implementation of the Bolton town centre development framework earlier this month.

Property management company JLL will continue to manage the existing retail space, which contains 46 retail units, kiosks, office accommodation and a 285-space car park covering more than 280,000 sq ft.

A spokesperson from Midia said: ‘This investment is a fantastic opportunity for one of Greater Manchester’s largest towns to establish itself as major player within the Northern Powerhouse. Midia has extensive experience in partnering with public sector organisations and we look forward to working closely with Bolton Council to deliver a programme of regeneration that secures long-term economic growth for the town.’