News

Announcement soon on Westgate development

By Clare Alexander
October 01, 2009

A NEW public consultation into a £50m leisure complex for Aldershot town centre will name the proposed supermarket planned for the site.

The document into the long-awaited Westgate development is due to be published in six weeks.

A multi-screen cinema, restaurants and cafés will form the core of the complex, next to Princes Hall.

A supermarket will also be built on the land which was originally earmarked for housing, before Linden Homes pulled out of the deal because of the recession.

Although Rushmoor Borough Council has yet to confirm who the food retailer will be, Labour members on Rushmoor Borough Council believe it could be Morrisons.

As the News & Mail went to press, council leader Peter Moyle was due to make an announcement about Westgate, so called because it is seen as the western gateway to Aldershot.

At the same meeting Cllr Mike Roberts (Labour) tabled a motion calling for an immediate public debate on the future of Aldershot and the “continued run down nature of the town centre”.

He accused the leading Conservative group of failing to fulfil ‘vision statements’ and to keep members updated, a claim vehemently rejected by the Tory administration.

Cllr Roberts said they had limited access to information but said a food retailer was one of the alternative options suggested for the site after the residential plans were scrapped.

“They are looking for something to take on Tesco,” Cllr Roberts said. “They want them to go head to head.”

Cllr Roberts said there was a series of questions that needed answering about development in the town.

“What we don’t want is more vision statements for the town. We want to know what the rest of the town is going to be doing in the future. All we have seen is shops closing,” he said.

“There’s no clear indication of what’s happening in the town itself.”

The food retailer at Westgate would have to be big enough to support the rest of the scheme.

Rushmoor Borough Council chief executive Andrew Lloyd said: “We are seeking an alternative that would generate money to enable the leisure scheme to be deliverable and affordable.

"We would expect to name the retailer pretty soon.”

The council already has planning consent for the Cineworld complex and a residential component but they will now need permission for an alternative retail use.

The council and its developers Citygrove have lined up potential occupiers of the site.

Mr Lloyd acknowledged the new retailer could attract competition to the town but said that was not the main objective.

“Our key driver has been to deliver a high quality leisure scheme on that site anchored by a good cinema and car parking. In order to deliver we need to have alternative use.

“Housing was ideal, and underpins developments across the country. But overnight, housing schemes were cancelled.”

Rushmoor leader Cllr Moyle said they would try and deliver their promise.

“It’s disgraceful that Mike Roberts, who’s up for election is starting some early political posturing.

“They think it’s alright to rubbish Aldershot when a lot of people think Aldershot has a bright future, including us,” he said.

The public consultation will last around six weeks, after which planning permission will be sought.

Morrisons was unavailable for comment.

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its not just westgate being built its the town centre itself, all we have in their is pound shops, charity shops, pubs, clubs, take aways and cafes. Look at farnborough they have sainsburys, asda, b&q, wickes, great clothing stores, our council offices, our fire station, which last 2 were in aldershot, everything moves to farnborough and rushmoor borough council wonder why us in aldershot are so fedup. I was quite shocked the other day to find that the conservative club was still in aldershot, why is that when most of the torries live in farnborough , including the MP Gerald Howarth who states on his own website that he stands for Aldershot. just look at following:- http://www.geraldhowarth.org.uk/

Aldershot Born
21/10/2009 at 09:31

1 wont hold my breath!!!!

Dory, Aldershot
15/10/2009 at 11:27

I wont be holding my breath!

Dory, Aldershot
14/10/2009 at 11:50

Firstly I would like to say that Mr Mike Roberts has tried very hard for Aldershot over the years to try and get things sorted out for us who live in Aldershot - like himself also I might add. But he hasn't got much of a voice and seems to be banging his head up agaist a brick wall to get anything done in Aldershot due to most of Rushmoor Borough council being made up of Conservative Councillors [ 29 I think agaist 5 Labour] he is allways going to get out voted for anything to be done to the town. Cannot you not tell by the amount of things that Farnborugh get over Aldershot over the years, its okay for Rushmoor leader Cllr Moyle to say they would try and deliver their promise [ his own words as printed above] and “It’s disgraceful that Mike Roberts, who’s up for election is starting some early political posturing. Well Mr Roberts might be doing some election stuff but I would also think he is trying to get something started with What Rushmoor Borough Council promised over 9 years ago to acually get built. If any one should be ashamed about the future of Aldershot it should be Rushmoor borough Council and all those that have said in the past that us in Aldershot would be upgraded - but in stead they have just left us with empty shops and buildings and more and more flats being built out of the empty buildings - its about time our town [Aldershot] had some of what Farnborough has Shops and a thriving town, after all Farnborough wouldn't have half as much if us in Aldershot stopped paying our council tax.

Aldershot Born
3/10/2009 at 16:49

Its good that Westgate development will hopefully start to progress again, but we also need some action for the rest of the town. It seems to have gone quiet about the Discovery Campus/ Quarter at Municipal Gardens.

Doesn't our town needs as many things to attract people, and new investment into the towns centre. Many of the proposed development sites in the Town Centre Supplementary document are directly below Municipal Gardens.

Municipal Gardens is Aldershots very own Historic Victorian Park and Municipal area. Used for Parades and celebrations, when we had a thriving Town.

You also have the Towns focal points in the background, which are the Wesley's Chambers Clock Tower, which can be seen when coming along the A 31 from Guildford. And used to be like a welcoming beacon when it was well lit up at night to our town. And the Old Town Hall, where the flag on top of the flag pole could be seen from afar as well.

You can see a similar setting being used by Hampshire County Council/ Dorset County Council, at The Red House Museum & Gardens, Quay Road, Christchurch. Which has the Church Tower as a Landmark backdrop for the gardens.