Work on £40m shops scheme could start within months

Councillors are meeting tomorrow to discuss progress on plans for the redevelopment of the British Home Stores site in Bridge Road, Kirkstall.

Metric Property Investments bought the retail site for £12m earlier this year and has been in talks with council planners on a scheme that will see the buildings demolished and replaced with a retail development of 15 retail units, which will include BHS and Outfit.

A report to be discussed by members of the plans panel says that the overall design is considered to be acceptable.

The developers have been in talks with planners to fine-tune the details and ensure that improvements are made on previous designs.

The report says the redevelopmemt will be divided into four areas, including a replacement BHS store, a second block that will run down the boundary along the river Aire, a main store onto Bridge Road and a five-unit development of cafes, restaurants or coffee shops.

The developer is hoping that the new retail park will have a closer relationship with the neighbouring Abbey Light Railway.

Local councillors are broadly happy with the scheme, although they remain concerned about the impact on traffic and how much public space will be retained.

Kirkstall Labour Councillor John Illingworth said: “I am reasonably comfortable with what they are suggesting. The buildings on the site are dropping to bits and leaking water so they will be completely demolished. This scheme will cost millions and pounds and take about a year to build.”

Councillor Illingworth said it was essential that the planning application was considered in parallel with the expected Tesco application at Kirkstall Lane.

He said all three major retail operators in Kirkstall “need to put their heads together with the Council and the Kirkstall Forge developer in order to devise a workable solution” to highways and public transport issues.

“The Council needs to ensure that public transport has priority and continues to do so. This could involve consideration of the re-alignment of the existing road network, creation of new bus lanes and a re-think of the way the network operates.”

Members of Leeds Civic Trust have also reiterated the importance of developing a road layout which does not “condemn pedestrians to a mass of crossing interrupted by corrals on small traffic islands.”

Planners have been working with the developers on issues around highways and car parking.

There will be fewer car parking spaces in the current scheme compared to a previous application for the site. The new design includes space for only 350 spaces, compared with 438 in the old scheme.

“This needs to be looked into and information needs to be submitted to justify this reduction in car parking numbers,” the report says. “This information is being collated by the applicant and is due to be submitted shortly for officer opinion.”

The council is asking the developer for a £223,000 contribution towards public transport improvements but the developer says it would be happy to pay £170,000 and that any more would mean the scheme is not viable.

Last night a spokesman for the developers said the company anticipated the plans being decided next month and, if granted, work could begin on site next spring.

The construction budget has been set at around £12m-£14m. with an end value of around £40m.

There will be 15 retail units in total, although 13 have yet to be filled.

“We are pretty confident we can do that,” said the spokesman, adding: “We think the development will be a big improvement for the site. The building project will take 12 months.”