MEPC has lodged a planning application for a £50m shopping development to transform Staines town centre.
The 247,580 sq ft (23,000m2) Middlesex scheme, to be known as Two Rivers, will be built on 17 acres (6.8ha).
Designed by Leslie Jones, the development will consist of 11 large stores, plus 10 shop units and parking for more than 900 cars. Construction is expected to start next spring with completion set for Christmas 1997.
“With a large number of local people choosing to shop in other centres, such as Kingston, Woking or Slough, this is an unrivalled opportunity to put Staines back on the map,” said MEPC’s senior development manager, Jeremy Collins. MEPC is being advised by Hillier Parker.
The development is likely to be financed, in part, from the proceeds of selling the 260,000 sq ft (24,154m2) Elmsleigh shopping centre in Staines with joint owner BP Pension Fund. The pair is asking £48m through selling agents DTZ Debenham Thorpe and Philips Wilks.
- MEPC is buying Norwich Union’s 42.5% stake in the 250,000 sq ft (23,226m2) Mill Gate shopping centre in Bury, Lancs. In return, MEPC has surrendered its 44.5% interest in 1 Liverpool Street, London EC1 – a 45,496 sq ft (4,236m2) office building. Both schemes were developed jointly by MEPC in partnershipwith NU.
