Council approves £8.75m spend on second phase of Cannock town centre regeneration
The second phase of transforming Cannock town centre has moved forward after senior district councillors granted permission to spend up to £8.75 million – but a request to Government to adjust plans will not be decided on until after the General Election.
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Cannock Chase Council secured £20m from the first round of the Government’s Levelling Up Fund (LUF) in October 2021, with a deadline of spending the money by the end of March 2025.
The ambitious scheme put forward to regenerate the town centre included re-development of the former multi-storey car park and indoor market hall site to create a new cultural hub which included the refurbishment of the Prince of Wales Theatre, as well as a business workspace, creation of a “northern gateway” with new public realm and commercial space and a retirement living complex.
The total cost of the scheme was estimated to be £44m at the time, and in February 2022 the council committed a further £17.2m, with the remaining £6.8m expected to be met by an unsecured private sector investor for the retirement living complex.
But due to the “volatility” of construction costs and inflation, “the total project as originally set out is not currently deliverable within the previously approved budget”, a report to the latest cabinet meeting said. It added that the compulsory purchase order process to acquire land needed for the regeneration had affected delivery of the project.
It added: “Officers have worked with the design team to undertake a review of the scheme. This process resulted in two distinct phases of development being identified, the first of which was reported to Cabinet on March 28, 2024, where permission to spend was granted.
