£500m Northern Quarter project put on hold
The £500m transformation of Portsmouth's city centre has been put on hold indefinitely, The News can reveal.
Developers Centros have told council leaders they won't be able to build the Northern Quarter by 2011.
It means compulsory purchase orders – which allow them to buy up property to make way for the development – will expire in 2010 before any work starts.
After that Centros will have to start applying for them again, which is likely to take years.
It is a major blow to city leaders.
Councillor Mike Hancock, the man in charge of planning, regeneration and economic development, said: 'I am bitterly disappointed.
'Because of the credit crunch it is unlikely they are going to be able to pull everything together before the compulsory purchase orders expire. They have given a very clear indication to the council that they are not going to walk away.
'But there is so much uncertainty in the industry that I think they were wise to say they weren't going to be able to deliver in that time.'
The News understands Centros still has funding in place for the scheme, which would have been built on the site of the old Tricorn centre.
But the firm is struggling to come up with a design that gives a decent return on any investment.
Last year just three shops had signed up – John Lewis, Marks & Spencer and New Look – to a project that was originally designed to produce 80 shops, restaurants and cafes. In July the firm revealed it was trying to come up with a more 'robust' scheme, and plans were expected in December.
Cllr Hancock said Centros is still re-designing the scheme, but now there is no timetable in place.
Portsmouth City Council now plans to set Centros a series of delivery targets in an attempt to get the scheme back on track after 2010.
'I do not think there is a development of this nature in the country that is still going ahead,' said Cllr Hancock.
'I am just grateful we still have a developer willing to invest.'
But fears have been voiced that the project may never recover from a lengthy delay.
Tory leader Steve Wemyss said: 'It has taken years and cost millions to get this far, and look how far forward we are – not very.'
No-one from Centros was available to comment.
PLAGUED BY DELAYS
The Northern Quarter has faced a series of setbacks since plans were first revealed in 2005.
Even the initial planning application was submitted late after Centros admitted they had underestimated the project's complexity.
The biggest thorn in the side of the scheme has been Mark Austin, who claims the council acted unlawfully when it issued compulsory purchase orders to buy-up shops in Commercial Road to make way for the development.
If Portsmouth City Council is forced to re-apply for CPOs after 2010 it could face the same delays.
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Friday 25 May 2012
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