Proposed Broadmarsh expansion to create 5,000 jobs

Under the plans a new street connecting the train station and the Lace Market will be built

Shopping centre developer Westfield has submitted plans for a £500m expansion of its Broadmarsh centre in Nottingham which it says would create 5,000 jobs.

The project would almost triple the size of the existing 400,000 sq ft centre (37,161 sq m) to 1.1m sq ft (102,000 sq m).

The proposals are being considered by Nottingham City Council with a decision expected in the next few months.

The project would start in 2012 if approved and be completed by 2015.

Open-air routes

The plans will be on display at the Broadmarsh Centre from Thursday to Sunday during the centre's normal opening hours.

The expansion would include Marks and Spencer, Debenhams and several other unconfirmed retailers, the spokesman said.

The expanded shopping centre will include a glazed covered mall

The centre would be expanded towards the city's railway station and will include an additional 2,700 car park spaces.

The new Broadmarsh would include separate sections linked by open-air pedestrian routes.

City council deputy leader Graham Chapman said: "It is going to be an open street with a very nice development underneath the viaduct.

"It is not going to be a box with a lot of shops in it."

A Westfield spokesman said the firm was "committed to the scheme" which was first submitted in late 2010.

Last April, Westfield said plans to refurbish the Broadmarsh had been delayed due to the recession.