Major shopping centre to get huge upgrade as plans to demolish it shelved
24.01.2022 - 17:01
/ manchestereveningnews.co.uk
Plans to redevelop the Grafton Centre in Altrincham have been shelved.
Instead of developing the site as part of the wider regeneration of Altrincham, a total of £400k is set to be invested by Trafford council, funded through borrowing, to breathe new life into it.
The council’s executive is set to vote on the plans tonight (Monday January 24) to pump the cash into the shopping centre to secure its long term future, however any proposals for a major redevelopment has been paused for now.
Trafford council bought the shopping centre and hotel in 2018 for £10.8m and brought property experts CBRE on board in 2020 to assess options for the site.
The firm carried out an appraisal of all options to help the council decide what the centre’s future will look like.
Trafford council had already begun the procurement process looking for developers to work on the site before coronavirus hit, but had to put this on hold during the pandemic.
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Now, redevelopment plans for the site remain paused and the immediate plan for the building is for the council to manage existing tenants and work to re-let vacant units in the shopping centre.
The report updating the council on the situation said: “The council still has clear ambitions to redevelop the centre; deliver a regenerative benefit to the wider