Future Development
The area to the north of the centre may be developed over the next few years into another shopping centre, planned to contain more sizeable retail units to try to attract some of the larger stores into Stockport compared to the on average smaller units currently offered in the town centre by the Merseyway, this development is to be called Bridgefield. The initial developer was Australian Company, Lend Lease Corporation, who withdrew from the project in August 2008, throwing into doubt the whole of the town centre masterplan. But the council are still keen for another developer to take on the redevelopment scheme. If constructed and when completed it is expected that this development will directly compete with the Merseyway for similar tenants. It has the backing of the council as it is the largest part of the town centre masterplan; 'Future Stockport'.
In 2004 the local council announced that they were drawing up plans to redevelop the centre in conjunction with the owner Stockport Holdings Ltd
In April 2007 Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council announced plans for a £2.25million refurbishment of the centre's car park, involving a major cosmetic improvement and a possible increase in the number of spaces.
In August 2008, Lend Lease Corporation announced their intention to withdraw from the Bridgefield Redevelopment project due to global economic conditions and a drop in profits for 2007, Lend Lease had originally been selected as preferred developer by Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council in 2006 and had spent considerable amounts developing plans. This decision has thrown into doubt the large scale redevelopment of this area, and could mean the Merseyway will continue to be the prime retail site in Stockport for considerable time, but may be redeveloped to provide more retail space.
Read more about this topic: Merseyway Shopping Centre
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