Wolverhampton council buys back £625,000 plot in Westside development
Wolverhampton council has spent £625,000 to buy back a plot of city centre land that it sold nine years ago.
The authority has bought the former magistrates court on Darlington Street from the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) following months of negotiations.
The council had sold part of the land, next to the Fold Street car park, to the DCLG for an undisclosed figure in 2006.
A deal has now been finalised to bring it back under council control, with bosses considering it to be a vital part of the city's Westside development. They say it makes 'strategic sense' to buy the land, which has been earmarked for 'leisure-led mixed use'.
A total of £850,000 had initially been set aside for redevelopment. In 2010, the DCLG revealed plans to transform the site into a five-storey magistrates court, but the scheme was scrapped after the Government determined it would not 'deliver sufficient value for money'.
Councillor John Reynolds, cabinet member for city economy, said: "The development of Westside will play an important part in the wider regeneration of the city and we want to make sure we can make it as attractive as possible to potential developers. The purchase of the former magistrates court makes strategic sense and will help the council move the project forward.
"Westside is the largest mixed leisure, commercial and residential development opportunity in Wolverhampton city centre and we have ambitious plans to transform the area."
Work is already under way with the first stage of regeneration at Westside, with The Way – Wolverhampton's new £5.5 million Youth Zone – set to officially open its doors in January.
Heantun House on Salop Street is set to be demolished as well as the Market Hall, with traders from the indoor market moving across Market Square to operate alongside the outdoor market.
The entire plans for the development stretch from Penn Road Island in the south to Darlington Street in the north.
