SouthGate: Phase 1 Open

Phase One of SouthGate Bath opened in early November, after extensive involvement by many Council departments who have been working alongside Multi Development.

The new £360m shopping centre includes retailers such as H&M, All Saints, Kurt Geiger and New Look - set in wide, open streets with public spaces.  Once complete SouthGate Bath will have over 55 new and exciting stores and also includes a three level basement 860 space car park.

Many teams from the Council have been involved in this project – including Major Projects, Property Services and Highways.  They have worked on monitoring construction, advising on building control and safety standards, and in the early stages, overseeing the archaeological excavations.  The location of the site has also needed co-ordination of traffic, public transport and facilities.

Phase two and three will continue to require the Council's expertise in project management and communication to ensure residents and visitors are aware of any project related activity.

Phase 2 opens in May 2010 and the final Phase in Autumn 2010 when the 125,000 sq ft flagship Debenhams store will open.

SouthGate Jobs & Training Bus: New dates announced 

Due to the high popularity of the SouthGate Jobs and Training Bus, Bath & North East Somerset Council has announced new dates when the bus will be touring communities across the district. The bus will visit Radstock a further four times, Midsomer Norton three times and Keynsham two times between 30th October and Christmas, in addition to many locations in Bath.

Councillor Terry Gazzard (Conservative, Abbey), Cabinet Member for Development and Major Projects, said, “Bath & North East Somerset Council has received very positive feedback from businesses and residents about the information on board the bus. The Council has listened to people’s views and extended the number of communities the bus is visiting to give everyone an opportunity to access jobs and training.”

Hundreds of people have already visited the bus, supported by the West in Work partners, which combines the opportunity to apply for jobs across the area and the chance to find out about training,  brush-up on job search and workplace skills.

West at Work Director, David Draycott, said: “People can find out about improving their skills and finding work. Having up-to-date skills and access to the latest information is vital in this economic climate, and the bus is a good place for jobseekers to start.”

Full list of dates below:

Radstock (near Victoria Hall); Tuesday 3rd November; Monday 16th November ; Monday 30th November; Monday 14th December.               

Midsomer Norton (near the Hollies); Weds 11th November; Friday 27th November; Tuesday 8th December.

Keynsham (Town Centre); Wednesday 25th November (town centre); Wednesday 9th December (town centre).

Bath (Stall Street); Thursday 29th October; Friday 30th October; Weds 4th November (Southgate opening day); Thursday 5th November; Friday 6th November; Friday 13th November; Thursday 19th November; Friday 20th November; Friday 11th December; Friday 18th December.

Whiteway (Haycombe Drive); Tuesday 10th November; Thursday 26th November

Thursday 10th December.                  

London Road (Morrisons car park); Wednesday 28th October; Wednesday 18th November.                 

Twerton (Bath City Football Club car park); Thursday 12th November; Thursday 3rd December; Thursday 17th December.

West at Work offers employment and training support specifically developed to meet local needs. Partners involved in this project include Bath and North East Somerset Council, Jobcentre Plus, Connexions, the Local Learning Partnership, the Learning and Skills Council and the South West Regional Development Agency. Visit www.westatwork.co.uk

Project Introduction

In 2003 planning approval was granted for the re-development of the Southgate area of Bath,  creating six new blocks made up of:

37,000 m² of retail space, which will be an increase of 17,000m² on the current area.  This will include a department store and a variety store;

• 3,500m² of leisure space;
  
• 2,300m²  of restaurant space;
  
• 93 residential units, 23 of which will be affordable housing;
  
• New public transport interchange, including a new bus station;
  
• New and improved public realm, including new streets and open spaces
  
• 724 car-parking spaces.

The parties involved in the project are:

• Freeholders : Bath & North East Somerset Council
  
• Lessee: CGNU Life (with Morley Fund Management as their fund managers)
  
• Developer/Investor: Multi Development UK, as Morley Fund Management’s Joint Venture Partner

CGNU had a long lease of just the shopping centre with 60 years still to run.  They own land outside the existing shopping centre, and so does the Council. 

In 2005 CGNU and the Council signed a new long lease which will be preceded by a Building Agreement.  The Building Agreement will ensure that the redevelopment of the centre is carried out as agreed, and will include compliance with the conditions of CGNU's planning consent    Also in 2005 to assist and ensure there are no land assembly impediments a Compulsory Purchase Order was made to acquire all the land and rights necessary for the scheme to proceed.

In October 2006 Multi Development UK Ltd became CGNU/Morley Fund Management’s Joint Venture Partner. Multi Development is committed to delivering Southgate within the shortest possible time frame, and expect to be on-site with construction early in 2007 doing everything within its power to deliver the total redevelopment completed by 2011.