Croydon Council votes use CPO powers to complete site acquisition
The Croydon Partnership, the joint venture between Unbail-Rodamco-Westfield and Hammerson, has welcomed Croydon Council’s decision to invoke CPO powers to acquire the remaining land and interests needed to proceed with the delivery of the new £1.4bn redevelopment of the Croydon retail town centre.
Settlements have been reached with the vast majority of land owners and occupiers affected by the redevelopment, and agreements have already been reached for the relocation of nine occupiers from the Whitgift Centre to the Centrale shopping centre, which will continue to trade throughout the construction period. The Croydon Partnership and Croydon Council share the same commitment to keeping the town centre running, and retailers trading, throughout the construction period. The earliest date for construction to commence will be during 2019, which would lead to an anticipated opening of the new centre in 2023.
This decision represents the latest major milestone for the scheme and closely follows the announcement that John Lewis and Waitrose have confirmed they will be opening a full line department store and supermarket as part of the redevelopment.
Peter Miller, COO, UK/Italy/Benelux, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield said: “We welcome the decision in relation to the Compulsory Purchase Order for the Whitgift Centre and surrounding land. The decision represents another important milestone in delivering the scheme and 7,000 new jobs, helping ensure Croydon’s future as the retail and leisure capital for South London.”
