Torquay Debenhams to be flattened for flats and shops

The council is spending £9.6m on regeneration of the Strand with another £2.2m from the government's "levelling up" fund

An empty Debenhams store in Torquay is to be demolished as part of a major regeneration plan.

The property overlooking Torquay Harbour was bought by Torbay Council in 2020.

The council has voted to knock it down and replace it with 16 flats and a number of shops.

The authority is spending £9.6m on the regeneration of the Strand with another £2.2m from the government's "levelling up" fund.

Two other projects, including a new rail station in Edginswell and improvements to Torquay Harbour, are already under way, says the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

A planning application for the Strand work is expected to be submitted in June.

A council report said the regeneration will make the Strand "a more vibrant, healthier and better-connected space", with the Debenhams site at the centre of the transformation.