Shopping centre closes amid redevelopment plans

Units at Riverside shopping centre have been emptied in recent years pending the redevelopment

Work to prepare a shopping centre for redevelopment is set to begin as the building closes ahead of its proposed demolition.

Shropshire Council wants to knock down the Riverside Shopping Centre in Shrewsbury under regeneration plans for the town centre.

The centre is one of three in the town bought by the local authority for £51m in January 2018.

The council wants to replace it with a park, restaurants and other facilities.

The proposed park forms a central part of a masterplan for Shrewsbury town centre, which is also set to see a new cinema and offices, and better links between the town centre and river.

The mall was built on the site of the former Smithfield cattle market in the 1960s

A decision on the planning application for the proposed demolition of the Riverside Shopping Centre, submitted last year, is expected next month.

The Smithfield Riverside project will be mostly funded by a £19m award from the government's levelling-up fund.

Ian Nellins, Conservative deputy leader of Shropshire Council, said the "transformative" regeneration scheme would create jobs and would bring new investment to the town centre.

"We have always been clear on our intention to develop the Riverside centre, so I am delighted to see that progress on such an important stage in this redevelopment is getting underway," he added.

The 1960s mall has been slated for redevelopment for several years

Mr Nellins said the first phase of the project would be a new park and "multi-use area" which would be beneficial for those who lived locally.

He told BBC Radio Shropshire the council wanted to "keep Shrewsbury like Shrewsbury."

"We want to keep those independent-type, smaller-type businesses," he added.