Hammerson drawing up revised retail centre plans

Hammerson will soon submit a revised planning application for a Yorkshire shopping centre that could create 4,000 jobs.

Hammerson plans to bring forward amended plans for Eastgate Quarters in Leeds, which includes Marks & Spencer and John Lewis as anchor tenants.

Construction was initially scheduled for completion in 2012, but work stalled due to the recession.

The revised plans are being drawn up in consultation with Leeds City Council and are expected to be submitted by the end of the year.

Earlier this year, Andrew Hilston, Hammerson's project director for the Eastgate scheme, told the Yorkshire Post: "A regeneration project of this scale has the potential to truly transform this part of the city."

Hammerson's UK shopping centre portfolio generated 5.3 per cent like-for-like sales growth in its third quarter, against 6.2 percent for its French assets on the back of healthier household budgets, low interest rates and improving labour markets.

"Despite the uncertain economic backdrop, the trading performance at our regionally dominant shopping centres has been good and there is some evidence of a recovery in tenant demand," chief executive David Atkins said in a statement.

The upbeat retail sales performance "is paving the way for increased development profits", property analysts at Nomura said, noting Hammerson's expanding development pipeline.

The company has planning permissions in place to extend its Brent Cross shopping centre in London and the Silverburn mall in Glasgow, Scotland.

Construction of its Les Terrasses du Port retail scheme in Marseille starts next year with half the project already let.

Hammerson's 1.6 million-square-metre portfolio includes city-centre retail schemes such as the Bullring in Birmingham, Cabot Circus in Bristol and Highcross in Leicester.

In France, the company owns and manages some of the top shopping centres in the Ile-de-France region, including Italie 2, and Les 3 Fontaines.

The company said overall occupancy in its 5.4bn portfolio increased to 96.6 per cent at September 30, from 96.2 per cent three months earlier.

More than 50 new long-term leases were signed in the period, with overall new rents marginally above estimated rental values.

Hammerson said demand for space in the City of London rose in the third quarter, driving growth in rents and trimming supply of new space, which it said was poised to "fall sharply below historic levels" in the next two years.