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HISTORY & HERITAGE
A vision for Kendal
A vision to revitalise Kendal’s heartland started to take shape about three years ago. The Eric Wright Group, one of the North West’s major construction and development companies, kick-started serious negotiations after buying up property and land within the town centre and becoming a very credible force in Kendal with which to do business. And with Booths interested in occupying part of the proposed multi-million pound redevelopment off Stricklandgate, owners of The Westmorland Gazette took notice after years of deliberating how best to make use of its site.
Artist’s impression of the new Booths store on the
Westmorland Gazette site.
Eric Wright Group’s managing director Jim Carter said it was no secret developers had had their eye on The Westmorland Gazette land for years as a town centre site for redevelopment. The large plot behind the newspaper’s offices was mostly used as a staff car park but had so much more potential, and Mr Carter’s Preston-based company started looking at it afresh about three years ago.
“At that stage we were looking around for a site that would enable Booths to relocate,” recalled Mr Carter, who is also a director of Maple Grove – the Eric Wright Group’s development arm. The supermarket had outgrown its Highgate store and was struggling to meet the increasing demands of customers who wanted more choice of wine, cheeses and other popular produce, he said. Eric Wright Group has carried out much of Booths’ major development work, and the company was asked to play a part in the Kendal store’s relocation.
Mr Carter was confident a larger Booths would benefit other retailers by encouraging shoppers into Kendal to stock up on groceries and then meander around rather than doing a one-stop shop out of town. “People will go on to shop elsewhere as well - you get the double trade effect which you only get from a town centre store,” he said.
Mr Carter, who joined Eric Wright Group in 1986 before being appointed a director in 1989 and then managing director, said the Gazette site would have been insufficient without further plots. The narrow access ramp off Low Fellside had been considered too tight for HGVs, but a larger development site meant a new, safer access could be created.
Eric Wright Group had purchased from Boots Properties a retail unit on Stricklandgate - currently leased to Body Care - as well as land stretching behind the shop to Low Fellside and the Entry Lane car park area, also owned by Boots Properties.
Mr Carter, a Lancastrian who now lives in Chorley, said ownership of the adjacent plot behind Body Care had given Eric Wright Group credibility as a partner who could work with The Westmorland Gazette. “I don’t know if that was a turning point but we also had Booths as a potential occupier and they were well known in the town. We started to have meetings with Newsquest (owners of The Westmorland Gazette).”
His hopes for the site centred on creating a quality scheme acceptable to the authorities and other interested groups. “Meetings were held with Kendal Civic Society and Kendal Town Council,” recalled Mr Carter, a keen walker who retains strong connections with the area having lived in Sandside for ten years. “One issue was traffic. We were trying to demonstrate how we could provide access to the rear of the site and not clutter up existing traffic on Stricklandgate more than necessary. That tied in with the reversing of traffic flows on Lowther Street.”
Negotiations lasted more than 15 months before the final scheme was unveiled, revealing plans for the Booths store - about three times the size of the Highgate store - new town centre shops, apartments, car parking on two decks and a public piazza. “It is a £20 million investment for the town,” said Mr Carter. “It will increase employment because the Booths stores will need more staff than its existing site, not to mention the other shops. “And bringing residential units into the town centre is great because you want people living there and going out to restaurants in the evening. That will help the 24-hour life line.” “We had a lot of support,” recalled Mr Carter. “There were no objections in principle to the scheme. There were slightly different stances – some people wanted more residential while there were different approaches to the architectural side, but they were more design development views than principle objections. “I think most people want Booths to stay in the town and it is a focal point in the scheme.”
Mr Carter’s vision had always been to create housing, retail opportunities and an attractive, viable link between the Booths store and Stricklandgate. “I wanted to create additional shopping which in itself would be an investment. I wanted the store to connect with Stricklandgate so we would genuinely pick up trade with people doing a full shopping trip in Kendal who could then walk through an attractive environment.” He was also concerned that Low Fellside residents would not overlook a sea of cars. “That’s what led to the idea of housing on Low Fellside,” he explained.
Rubble now dominates the old Gazette staff car park
as the bulldozers move in.
Giving credit where due, Mr Carter said South Lakeland District Council’s development control manager Peter Ridgway had proposed the public square. “He was very keen to achieve two things - to open up an area that could be busy and benefit the town, call it a square or a piazza, and for that to be the spring point for a link through to the Liberal Club area. We have provided that.” Kendal Town Council was keen to see accommodation within the scheme - town centre apartments will be constructed above the retail units ensuring the height of the new properties will be in scale with surrounding buildings.
Mr Carter explained that Eric Wright Group would retain and lease all the retail units, except the Booths store. The question of whether to sell the residential units is yet to be decided, although Mr Carter said: “I will go with what the market dictates at the time.”
A programme of demolition and construction, which will span almost two years, is now under way and will provide work for more than 400 people, employed by 70 different sub contractors, before the development is complete in autumn 2004. Mr Carter admitted: “We have found the renovations on Lakeland’s unit more complicated than we had envisaged. As we uncovered the floors and the roof the structure was more suspect than we had expected and we have had to do more strengthening work than planned.” However, he was not concerned. “I am pleased with how it is going and so far everything is on time. It has been challenging but I do enjoy it. It certainly has its moments and I am a lot greyer now but it is very worthwhile.”
He added: “Eric Wright Group also does office development and a lot of industrial and warehousing but I don’t think the satisfaction is as good as when you put something into a town centre. And if it is attractive, as we hope it will be, there’s a sense of pride.”
Reproduced courtesy of The Westmorland Gazette,
'New Horizon', Friday, March 14, 2003 |
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