by Janice McKenzie
Watford council, the Sun Alliance Insurance Group and Capital & Counties have submitted a planning application to the council for a new 1/2m-sq ft shopping centre in the heart of the town.
The new centre, on a 10-acre site known as Mars 1, will link up to the existing Charter Place Shopping Centre — which it is hoped will be refurbished by its owners, the council and General Accident — and extend across Queen’s Road to the inner ring road. It will include the relocation and expansion of John Lewis, Trewins, and extensions for Marks & Spencer and British Home Stores.
The net increase in shopping space in the town centre will be about 270,000 sq ft. Also planned are a food court, play group and 1,750 car spaces.
John Lewis’ decision to expand is despite the Secretary of State’s overruling of his inspector to approve the Park Plaza inquiry at Hatfield, reported last week at p1296. Kenneth Baker’s decision will mean an additional 200,000 sq ft of shopping only 10 miles from Watford.
A spokesman for John Lewis said: “The latest Government decision does nothing to clear up the disarray of the planning system. The appeal decision on the Centre 21 application and the refusal of permission for a hotel development at Wraysbury had given greater confidence that Government policy was becoming firmer against major out-of-town shopping developments.
“The inspector described the Park Plaza inquiry as ‘a test case on the principles of out-of-town development’, but the Secretary of State’s decision has given no clue to his department’s response. If he can permit this development, in clear contravention of the established plans, and against the recommendation of his own inspector, we can only begin to wonder again whether a similar attitude might after all be adopted towards restrictions on development in the green belt, and particularly towards the current proposals for a shopping centre at Bricket Wood.”
He added, though, that the partnership’s decision to expand their Watford store indicates their confidence in the ability of town centres, with good parking and road connections, to serve a widely dispersed population such as Hertfordshire’s. “It is time that ministers showed that they have a similar conviction and wish to support these centres.”
The new Watford project will be built in two phases and a start should be made in 1987. The first phase should be complete by the end of 1989 and the whole centre in 1992. It will cost about £85m, which will be met by Sun Alliance and Capital & Counties.
C&C will be project managers and will also manage the centre. Architects are Chapman Taylor Partners. Agents will be Molyneux Rose and Healey & Baker.
