An historic Yorkshire town could soon be gaining a unique addition to its high street attractions – a refurbished subterranean Victorian shopping street hidden underneath a present-day development. Manager of the ground-level property, Nick Holroyd, is presently in discussions with developers regarding the site’s potential as a new retail development and believes the attraction could prove to be hugely popular with shoppers and historians alike.
The site now lies underneath the Royal Arcade in Keighley, West Yorkshire, and was discovered purely by chance when builders broke through into the cavernous space during refurbishment works on the development above in 2002.
While the successful Royal Arcade is currently two storeys tall and is comprised of both retail and residential space, there are hopes that the conversion of the subterranean level would drum up significant consumer footfall for surrounding businesses.
The street was last functional in the 1890s, and wooden shop fronts and stable pens dating back to the period are still in existence today. Builders also discovered doors, fittings and signs from several of the original retail spaces in the street itself, which will presumably be incorporated into future development work in order to hark back to the street’s heritage.
Mr Holroyd states that, should the development go ahead, he will be determined to keep the underground street’s history in mind and therefore will be selective about the types of businesses taking up tenancy.
He says; “We’d be very restricted for what we could do.
“It’s mainly on safety and fire assessment grounds – if we can get these things sorted then we definitely will develop it.
“We’ve looked at opening it up with craft shops; it will be a working environment, shops that would fit in with what it used to be. We’ll utilise what’s in there.”
At present, Mr Holroyd is working closely with an architect and structural engineer, and early blueprints indicate that there would be space for up to eight individual retail units within the completed development.
In the years since 2002, the street has been wired up and a select number of tour groups have been able to visit the historical site. However, it was only after Mr Holroyd bought out previous business partner Frank Booth that he has been able to channel significant funds into the project.
Today, the above arcade has become a successful retail site thanks to local events and a high level of internet marketing – it is hoped that the secret level hidden underfoot for so long will have a chance to share, and even build upon, its good fortune.
Do you think the development of the subterranean street should focus on the expansion of retail space within the area or, given the current situation in the retail industry, pushing for a more tourism-centred focus would prove to be more popular and profitable in the end?
