Middlesbrough Council has bought a House of Fraser site and the Captain Cook Square shopping centre in the town centre.
The council agreed the deal last week, which will see the authority take ownership of the sites and bid for £20m of the government’s Future High Streets Fund to repurpose the circa 300,000 sq ft of space (25% of the town’s high street) into a leisure and culture hub.
According to Radius Data Exchange, Mars Pension Fund was the previous freeholder of Captain Cook Square. The fund bought the 220,000 sq ft shopping centre as part of a £250m portfolio deal, compromising seven shopping centres totalling 2.1m sq ft.
Middlesbrough mayor Andy Preston said: “The challenges were there even before the chaos wreaked by the coronavirus pandemic, so it’s more important than ever that we invest creatively and effectively in the health and long-term viability of our town centre.
“There is amazing potential, but major changes are needed if we are to fulfil that potential and open up a whole new chapter in Middlesbrough’s history.”
To send feedback, e-mail lucy.alderson@egi.co.uk or tweet @LucyAJourno or @estatesgazette
