Leeds Clarence Dock redevelopment masterplan revealed

The plans would bring new life to the Clarence Dock area, developers claimed

Plans to revitalise an ailing Leeds city centre waterside development have been officially unveiled by developers.

Property firm Allied London, which bought the 150-year lease to Clarence Dock in January, said it planned to "bring life back" to the area.

Currently 28 of the site's 35 restaurant and retail units are empty.

The company's plans include the creation of a new shopping, food and cafe street and a "workspace hub" for the creative and digital industries.

'Inappropriate uses'

Leisure attractions, a restaurant boardwalk and a space for concerts and theatre were also planned, the firm revealed.

The site would revert to its original name of New Dock, by which the area was known from its opening in 1843.

The Clarence Dock development, which opened in 2007, was created to transform the industrial riverside area into a fashionable urban village with upmarket shops and restaurants.

Since it opened, a coffee shop and clothes store have closed, with other businesses warning they could also be in trouble unless more people were drawn to the area.

Michael Ingall, Allied London chief executive, said the new masterplan was aimed at returning the site to the original intentions behind the dock's redevelopment.

"It has become isolated due to inappropriate uses and the site's inability to communicate with the immediate and surrounding communities," he said.

"There's nothing here. It's become isolated because it has no spirit and it has no soul."

The dock plans would take between three to five years to be fully implemented but some elements could be in place by summer 2014, said Mr Ingall.