Bruntwood and Bury Council have acquired the Mill Gate shopping centre in Bury town centre, as part of a wider regeneration plan that will overhaul the town centre.
The town regeneration pioneer and Council will work together to create a multi-million pound masterplan to transform the shopping centre and the surrounding areas, as well as enhancing the existing character of the town centre.
Spanning 15 acres, it will become a vibrant and dynamic mixed-used development incorporating retail, leisure, hospitality and residential, with sustainability, education and wellness at its heart. It will also provide workspace, bringing co-working facilities directly to the high street.
Boasting an award-winning market, Bury town centre also benefits from the renowned Met theatre and strong transport links into Manchester City Centre and across the wider region. The joint venture’s new designs will seek to complement this existing retail and cultural offering in Bury, as well as utilising and adding to its existing infrastructure. The reimagined Mill Gate shopping centre will add to the existing strong identity of the town and create a space that local people will be proud of.
Over the next few months, the partnership will host a community engagement event where local people will have the opportunity to get to know the development team and have their say about what they want to see in their town. This will also help Bruntwood and Bury Council to gain a deeper understanding of how residents and the wider community are using the space, to enable them to develop the town for the people and help support the long-term growth of the local economy.
Bruntwood has a strong track record of town centre regeneration. Its purpose of ‘creating thriving cities’ recognises the need for continuous investment in the town centres that surround them to help each other succeed. The focus of Bruntwood’s work around reviving town centres is ensuring social, economic and environmental sustainability and creating a space that is dynamic, inspirational and futureproof.
Through this long-standing commitment to unlocking the potential of the UK’s towns, Bruntwood collaborates with trusted partners to bring about real change. In 2019, it formed a £50 million joint venture with Trafford Council to boost the regeneration of Stretford Mall and Altrincham’s Stamford Quarter.
The aim of these reinvigorated town centres is to evolve collaboration between residents and businesses to create inclusive and social hubs that add vibrancy to the whole community.
Chris Roberts, chief development officer at Bruntwood, said: “Town centres are spaces where people gather to connect and communicate. Creating thriving towns and cities is our purpose and we are proud of our track record of transformational town centre regeneration projects in Greater Manchester to date.
“Through this new project in Bury, we are confident that we can create an environment that provides for the needs of the people of the town and beyond. We want to create a place where people want to live, work and socialise, which is why we’ll be undertaking an extensive consultation period with local residents to ensure it provides for their needs and wants. Bury has a strong local identity and this is something we want to celebrate and amplify throughout this project and can this only be achieved by working side-by-side with local people.
“As the next step in our mission to create thriving towns, Bury presents an excellent opportunity to use everything we have learned in Stretford and Altrincham and help provide a town centre that works and is something the people of Bury can be proud of.”
Councillor Eamonn O’Brien, leader of the council, added: “These are huge proposals, but an opportunity that we cannot miss. Local jobs, businesses, public services and the very quality of people’s lives depend on us taking the initiative, with all partners and agencies working together to deliver prosperity for all.
“Our plans for the Mill Gate centre will complement initiatives for a new flexi-hall on Bury Market and improvements in the wider area, plus a new transport interchange, aimed at ‘future proofing’ the town centre against the challenges posed by the changing retail landscape.
“Under our regeneration proposals, we are determined to ensure that every part of our borough will flourish.
“Our plans to regenerate the heart of Radcliffe are well underway, following our successful bid for £20 million to build a multi-purpose business and leisure hub there, complemented by a new high school.
“We are driving forward major plans to transform the Longfield Centre in Prestwich, and we’ve just concluded our public consultation on how best to make Ramsbottom even better. Whitefield, meanwhile, is to receive expert support from the High Streets Task Force. “We are putting the biggest ever council investment into all these proposals to make sure that our borough, its businesses and communities will thrive for generations to come.”
