Central Glasgow malls fight back

Published: 17 January, 2007

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St Enoch Square

Two key retail projects are moving ahead in Glasgow city centre, as the council fights back against the profusion of developments in Scotland's central belt. Ivanhoe Cambridge's plans to upgrade and expand the St Enoch Centre into a 1.3m-sq ft retail destination have been given the go-ahead by the planning department. And Henderson Global Investors and Land Securities have submitted preliminary proposals for a major expansion to the Buchanan Galleries shopping centre that could take it over a million sq ft.

The St Enoch decision means work can now get underway on the £100m development programme which will include an extensive refurbishment of the existing mall area and the redevelopment of St Enoch Square. Work is expected to begin in early Spring on the site of the old Clydesdale Bank building on the corner of Argyle Street and St Enoch Square and is scheduled for completion by the end of 2009.

Claude Dion, Ivanhoe Cambridge's senior vice president Europe said: "St Enoch Centre has a two-fold advantage: it occupies an exceptional location and already enjoys high traffic. These two factors, taken together, have impelled us to move forward with this project and invest in this centre in order to ensure an optimal shopping experience for consumers and an enhanced business operating environment for retailers."

And Buchanan Galleries, which already accounts for almost one fifth of the total city centre retail space, could grow by two-thirds under new development proosals to create around 400,000 sq ft of additional retail and restaurant floorspace, a new multi-storey car park and new residential apartments.

The development framework to be agreed with Glasgow City Council will establish the design, transport and environmental considerations for the scheme and an outline planning application is expected to be lodged with the council in Spring 2007.

Nick Davis, development manager at Land Securities, said: "Until recently, Glasgow was second only to London in the UK's retail rankings. However, recent large-scale developments in other cities, notably Birmingham, have seen it slip in position. Buchanan Galleries already trades successfully, but we need to improve our retail offer in order to ensure that the city centre maintains its attraction.

"The proposed extension will increase Buchanan Galleries to over 1million sq ft which will provide the necessary critical mass to allow the introduction of larger, more modern retail floorplates that will attract new retailers to Glasgow. Our proposals will result in an exciting and dynamic new shopping environment, attracting more visitors and bringing more wealth to the city." If approved, the extended centre could be completed by Christmas 2010.

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