St Modwen still on for town regeneration, say West Berkshire Council

It comes after St Modwen, the developer appointed to revamp the London Road (Faraday Road) Industrial Estate, pulled out of a scheme to provide flats, a cinema, hotel and shops in an agreement with Arun District Council on the grounds that it was no longer financially viable.
West Berkshire Council spokesman Keith Ulyatt said: “The scheme in Bognor was very different from that proposed here which is on an industrial estate.
“Their detailed understanding of the London Road Industrial Estate and, importantly, their approach to partnership working with the council on the project to ensure the best outcome for Newbury
“It will not change the schedule here.
“The timescales we are working to with St Modwen are necessarily independent of any other project, and they remain on track.
“As soon as the council and St Modwen are in a position to announce more details of the scheme, we will of course do so.”
A spokesman for St Modwen, Gerwyn James, added: “In Bognor Regis, St Modwen and Arun District Council recently ended the development agreement on very amicable terms after a sustained effort from both parties to deliver a scheme through the recession.
“The council will now be directly progressing the scheme through the planning processes before reverting to the market once more next year.”
Earlier this year, West Berkshire Council announced St Modwen as its chosen developer for the regeneration scheme above five other shortlisted companies, including Wilson Bowden which would have worked with Faraday Developments Ltd (FDL), the firm behind the Faraday Plaza.
In August, the council rejected plans for the £50m plaza, which would consist of retail and housing space – 30 per cent of which would be affordable – an 80-bedroom hotel and restaurant and an additional exit and entrance road onto the A339, after its planning permission expired in 2012.
However, FDL director Duncan Crook said that council officers had been wrong to advise councillors that additional conditions could not be imposed on to the application – a measure, he argued, that could have quelled members concerns, with chief planning officer Michael Butler advising that members only had the power to approve or refuse the renewal of the application exactly as it stood.
Mr Crook added that the decision would be taken to appeal, particularly if the council was to consider a compulsory purchase order (CPO) on its land.
“We will most certainly be making the suggestion that it should be a public enquiry due to the severity of the issues at hand,” he said.