£50m Coventry development revealed
Plans to transform part of Coventry city centre have been unveiled. The £50m project, which was revealed by Insider last month, will include the development of the former Royal Mail Sorting Centre and the construction of a leisure centre and retail units.
Stourbridge-based Barberry Developments has purchased the 200,000 sq ft former Royal Mail Sorting Centre and adjoining properties, including 50 Bishop Street, and is planning a large and comprehensive retail-led scheme on the site.
Henry Bellfield, director of Barberry Developments, said: “We are working closely with Coventry City Council and hope to finalise in the coming weeks a planning application for a scheme totalling circa 400,000 sq ft to incorporate a supermarket superstore, non-food retail units, a fitness centre and associated on-site car parking.
“Following the closure of the Royal Mail Sorting Office this part of the city centre is in desperate need of new investment and redevelopment. The plans we are currently working on are hugely exciting and will create hundreds of jobs for local people.”
The site comprises about 3.5 acres with the proposed scheme producing a completed development value of about £60m, said Bellfield.
A planning application will be submitted this month and, following receipt of planning consent, work could begin on site later this year.
The development proposals include a supermarket superstore of 125,000 sq ft, a car park with 585 spaces over three levels, a gym and leisure facility and four non-food retail units totalling 8,000 sq ft.
Bellfield added that Barberry had been looking for an opportunity to invest in a major development in Coventry for a while.
He said: “We feel that the Royal Mail Sorting Centre is a fantastic site that offers huge potential. By buying these properties we have invested a lot of money into Coventry and in this scheme despite still being in an extremely difficult market. There is still talk of a double dip recession. Banks are still extremely cautious particularly with property. For us it is a huge leap of faith in the city.”
