Swindon's Brunel Centre could be redeveloped under ambitious town plans
The Borough Council's launched its 'Heart of Swindon' ideas
Landmarks in the centre of Swindon, including the Brunel Shopping Centre could be radically redeveloped if ambitious plans for the town centre’s regeneration come off.
And tower blocks holding flats and well as shops, restaurants bars and leisure facilities could become a much more common feature where parades of shops now dominate.
Swindon Borough Council launched its Heart of Swindon proposals, with increasing housing right in the heart of the town centre crucial to the plans.
That has already attracted £100,000 from Homes England to help with developing what the council calls ‘Knowledge Central’ - a zone primarily for business and employment space centred around the railway station, both north and south of the railway line.
But it’s in the heart of the shopping centre that the council’s ambitions will be most transformative, if they are realised.
Leader of the authority Councillor Jim Robbins said: “This is a vision which will see the town centre transformed.
“We want to have more people living in the centre – that will bring more businesses to serve them – more cafes, bars, restaurants, gyms for them to use.
“There will still be shops – but they will be different, serving people who live in the town centre, or come in to spend time there with friends and family – and not just shops which close at 5pm, leaving it empty.”
The council’s corporate director of inclusive economy and sustainability James Coulstock said the only way to do that is to build up.
He said: ”The only way to get 8,000 new homes into the town centre is to build at height.”
Mr Coulstock said the complexities of building higher than six stories makes it more expensive so many blocks may stop at six, but there could well be a mixture of heights.”
The plans could see the Brunel shopping centre right in the heart of the town developed to enable blocks of flats to be built, possibly with shops and gyms and restaurants on the ground floor.
The council’s glossy brochure for investors says: “Explore redevelopment of the Brunel Centre, which could include shops, community space, workspaces, homes and public space providing apartment living for students, young people and downsizers.”
Mr Coulstock said: “The Brunel Centre’s owners First Investment Real Estate Management has eight acres in the centre of town and this is an opportunity to regenerate that.”
FI itself still has a live planning application for two huge towers of 24 and 20 storeys on part of the centre at Wharf Green – and said: “As a major stakeholder and landowner, we are committed to the future of the town, as evidenced by our recent £10 million investment in office developments at Newbridge Square.
“We are working closely with the council on its Heart of Swindon strategy and we look forward to collaborating on the regeneration opportunities outlined in the plan, ensuring we meet the aspirations of the community and deliver a thriving town centre.”
There are already long-standing plans for new housing to be built on the cleared Kimmerfields site nearby and the Heart of Swindon proposals also envisages Fleet Street and the surrounding area as a hub for student housing, tied to the ‘centre for learning’ ambition of bringing institutes and campuses of further and higher education institutions to the town, centred around the railway station.