Spring start for Blackpool regen anchor store

BLACKPOOL Council has given the go-ahead for a new 58,000 sq ft Sainsbury’s foodstore, which will anchor the town’s £220m Central Business District scheme.

Approval for the foodstore was unanimously granted by the council’s planning committee on Monday night, and follows on from permissions granted for the construction of new council offices and a multi-storey car park last month.

The three projects combined comprise the entire first phase of a £220m joint venture between the city council and Muse Developments which will eventually cover 1.1m sq ft of space near Blackpool North station. Future phases are expected to include commercial offices, a hotel, retail space and restaurants.

Sainsbury’s has said that it will start work on the new store by next spring. Once complete, the store will employ 400 people – of which around 30% will be full-time posts.

Michael Morris, development surveyor for Sainsbury’s, said: “We’re delighted the Council has approved this application for a new Sainsbury’s in the town.

“This new store is part of a significant investment in Blackpool, which will help regenerate the area whilst creating up to 400 new jobs. This is in addition to the 20 new jobs recently announced at our nearby Red Bank Road store.

“We’re looking forward to working with Muse Developments and Blackpool Council to improve the shopping experience in Blackpool.”

The new store will have numerous sustainability features including a biomass boiler, rainwater harvesting and energy efficient refrigeration.

Mike Horner, regional director at Muse, added: “This is great news for Blackpool. We now have planning consent in place for the trio of buildings which, together, will form the first phase of the Central Business District project.”