Telford’s Southwater One this week welcomed members of the public to view the changes made to the once run-down property, marking the first phase of the regeneration of the town centre. 
The new building is home to Telford and Wrekin Council’s relocated First Point service, along with the new Southwater library, and so will become a major setting for community events in Telford. A Costa Coffee outlet has also opened on the ground floor, demonstrating the eagerness of big name brands to take up space in the ambitious redevelopment. Cabinet member for finance and enterprise at Telford and Wrekin Council, Councillor Bill McClements, believes the opening of Southwater One marks a pivotal stage in the overall redevelopment of Southwater. He says; “This has been years in the planning and months in the construction and Monday represents a very significant and exciting day for the whole borough. “Southwater One will give the council and a number of partners a frontline presence in the town centre and also means a fantastic state of the art library opening for the public to use.” As well as the unveiling of the completed building, members of the public were also invited to make use of the upgraded outdoor leisure facilities in public spaces surrounding Southwater. These include a new lake with urban beach, a number of footpaths and a large games area. In total, the regeneration of the Southwater area of Telford town centre is expected to cost £250 million. While certain aspects, such as a 602 space multi storey car park and retail spaces with tenants FAIRshare Credit Union and Mimosa, have already opened, there are still several exciting steps to go, including the opening of an 11 screen IMAX Cineworld, several additional restaurants and a Premier Inn hotel. Phase two of the redevelopment will primarily deal with the nearby shopping centre, which councillors have earmarked for modernisation. Although no details of this work have yet been revealed, it is expected to follow the current trend for increased leisure space and flexible retail units. Councillor McClements concludes; “The entire space already looks fantastic and it will be perfectly complemented by the planned regeneration of the shopping centre. “The whole development demonstrates that Telford is well and truly on the up and that major companies are believing in and investing in the borough, which is a direct result of our drive to attract inward investment. “This is also evidenced by stories of expansion by companies elsewhere in the borough, including Staubli, Faccenda, Pickstock and CLM.”
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