Plans submitted at last for Preston Tithebarn
Five years after it was first mooted, an outline planning application has been submitted by Lend Lease and Grosvenor for the £700m regeneration of Preston city centre.
If completed, Preston Tithebarn will deliver 1.5m sq ft of retail and leisure, anchored by a 230,000 sq ft John Lewis and a 150,00 sq ft Marks & Spencer alongside 100 more new shops.
The plans include a cinema, apartments and a refurbished Guild Arcade along with 2,700 parking spaces and a new bus station.
Richard Coppell from the Preston Tithebarn Partnership said: "Following an extensive period of consultation with the local residents, businesses and community representatives in Preston, the results have indicated that our proposal for Preston Tithebarn is a much-needed and much-desired development in the city.
"By introducing an exciting mix of international, national and independent retailers, and refreshing the markets, Preston Tithebarn will bring the City's retail offer right up to date, placing Preston back on the map as a first-class shopping destination."
The developers must wait to see if the plans, pending approval by Preston City Council, are called in for a public inquiry. Rival Lancashire councils Blackpool and Blackburn with Darwen have already said they will oppose the application on the grounds it is too large for the area.
PTP's recent public consultation, overseen by GVA Grimley, claimed that 81% of people who provided feedback on the plans believed that Tithebarn would encourage more people to visit the city and 78% said it would elevate the status of Preston in the North West.
