Town Centre East development receives positive feedback from residents

Rochdale’s retail and leisure development - aerial view of how the scheme might look

The Town Centre East development plans have received positive feedback from residents with work on the development hoping to be underway in mid-2016.

In a presentation to members of the Pennines Township Committee on Tuesday 3 (March), Richard Duddell from Rochdale Development Agency updated councillors on the progress of the development following the recent public consultation.

300 people signed in to the consultation, which was held between Tuesday 10 February and Thursday 12 February but more visitors did attend. 1,000 responses have been received via the website and 100 written responses have also been received.

The majority of the responses following the consultation are in favour of the scheme and are supportive of the layout, routes, planning and transport. The Town Centre East scheme would include restaurants, shops and a cinema.

Plans for a site on Penn Street have not yet been finalised but could potentially include residential and office buildings – these are currently just ideas and nothing has been agreed or finalised.

It is understood that a planning application is due in to the Council by the end of 2015 with further consultation set for 2015. It is then hoped that work can begin on site in mid-2016.

Councillor Neil Butterworth said: “I welcome the development but I do think we need to look at the wider town centre. I have heard a number of comments about the town centre and we don’t want this to lead down the road to an empty town centre.”

Mr Duddell agreed that the wider town centre area was something that would have to be looked at and that a number of comments were received about the town centre as a whole during the consultation.

He also stated that The Exchange Shopping Centre and The Wheatsheaf Shopping centre would be monitored as the development moves forward to see what impact it had on those.

Councillor Robert Clegg added: “I am delighted to see something happening with this.”