Part of Telford's £250m Southwater site to open in spring
The first phase of Telford's £250 million Southwater development – including a multi-screen cinema, hotel and the newly-refurbished ice rink – will be opened to the public in April next year, creating 900 jobs.
Officials at Telford & Wrekin Council this afternoon said the opening part of the development would be completed within eight months.
Once finished, it will include an 11-screen Cineworld cinema, a number of bars and restaurants, a 700-space multi-storey car park, an 83-bed Premier Inn hotel, a visitor centre and the fully refurbished and extended ice rink.
It will also include the Southwater 1 building, which will feature a new main library, a tourist information centre, bars, restaurants and a cafe
This afternoon's announcement is the first time project leaders have set an estimated date for the completion of the initial phase of work. Many of the buildings on the site are already starting to take shape.
Councillor Kuldip Sahota, leader of Telford & Wrekin Council, said he was delighted that the project was progressing so well.
He said: "The first phase of Southwater is due to open in April 2014.
"It is eight months away but I am looking forward to it, absolutely."
Further development will be carried out to expand the Southwater site in future years. There are plans to extend the multi-storey car park and build restaurants and another hotel within the next seven years.
Long-term plans – which could take up to 15 years to become reality – include further office space and more restaurants.
Hundreds of new homes are also due to be built as part of plans to breathe new life into the centre of Telford and to create a "night-time economy" to boost business.
It comes as a further £200 million is being spent on improving Telford Town Centre.
Work on the redeveloped centre will see 1,000 workers on site, with a further 3,000 jobs created once work is completed.
In July, more than 1,225 people visited a public exhibition about the development, with nearly 70 per cent completing a questionnaire in favour of the proposed approach to the redevelopment.
