The development site is currently occupied by a car park and the existing Bedford Borough Council’s offices, which will be vacated in the next couple of months. The area has been identified for redevelopment to improve leisure facilities in the town.
Denne and Coplan are working with architect PRP to develop proposals for the site, including a seven screen cinema, 150 bedroom hotel, 30,000 square feet of retail and restaurant space (A1/A3 uses) and 150 high-quality residential units. Discussions are being held with a cinema operator and a planning application is expected to be submitted in the summer.
Coplan Estates director Colin McQueston said: “The riverside location of the site provides us with a unique opportunity to deliver an exceptional, leisure-led, regeneration scheme to complement the existing town centre and build upon the council’s clear objective to create a stronger local economy by delivering sustainable growth and employment for existing and future residents.”
Denne managing director Graham Brown added: “We look forward to working with Coplan and the local community to progress these proposals and maximise the opportunities this project presents”
Coplan and Denne are also the preferred development team for the £50m mixed use redevelopment of a council car park in Herne Bay for Canterbury City Council.
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