CWAC sets out on CPO path for Northgate

Cheshire West & Chester Council has started the process of using Compulsory Purchase powers to acquire 70 city centre properties as it looks to move the £300m Chester Northgate project forward.

The buildings are in the area of Hunter Street, St Martins Way, the rear of Watergate Street and Northgate Street behind Town Hall Square, where the retail and leisure-led development will be built.

GVA’s compulsory purchase team joined the Chester Northgate team in November 2016, two months after CWAC and Rivington Land’s proposal for the long-problematic project was approved.

The council said that it has been in discussions with affected property owners and that each will receive a copy of the order in the next week.

Cllr Brian Clarke, cabinet member for economic development and Infrastructure said: “We understand that making a CPO to acquire property interests can be difficult for property owners so we have been meeting and talking with them for some time to try and get an agreement that is right for all parties.

“This is a necessary step towards delivering the new Chester Northgate. We are now closer than we have ever been before – the finish line may be in the distance but we are marching towards it. We have delivered on Storyhouse, we have delivered Frodsham Street and our residents can trust that we will deliver on Northgate too.”

Progress has quickened at Northgate since approval in September. A professional team including Strutt & Parker, JLL, ACME, Aecom and Gardiner & Theobald has been assembled, while in February House of Fraser signed a 100,000 sq ft anchor pre-let and funding for a Crowne Plaza hotel was committed.

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CWAC have just destroyed Northwich – Barons quay development Totally empty
weaver square totally empty now – and in the past few days they have decided to introduce parking chargers something the previous council Vale Royal Borough council promised on there watch would never happen! Northwich residents have asked for the resignations of the four Northwich labour councillors who voted for this motion!

By Northwich

It defies believe that Cheshire West and Chester Borough Council is being allowed to indulge itself in spending huge amounts of public money on retail property development after the total mess it has made with its Barons Quay Development in Northwich. Both political parties, Conservative and Labour, are in collusion to hide what has happened because they both share responsibility for the ineptitude and sheer stupidity which has cost the taxpayer in excess of £80million of capital and is currently costing another £2 million a year in finance and other charges being spent on a rather ugly set of empty buildings which are the laughing stock of the local community.

Literally, a bunch of wasters.

By R Weaver

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