It has been confirmed that an offer has been made for Wolverhampton’s Mander Centre, which current owner Delancey placed on the market only a few months ago with a £50 million price tag.
Although the identity of the potential buyer has not been revealed, city council deputy leader Peter Bilson has confirmed that a “very credible property development company” is likely to become the new owner of the shopping centre within the next few weeks.
Mr Bilson’s comments were backed up by a statement to the press from Wolverhampton city council leader Roger Lawrence, who also confirmed that the front runner has made a commitment to finalising the ongoing refurbishment works should their bid be accepted.
He said; “We understand the deal is very close to being finalised.
“We welcome the new investment and look forward to working with the new owner.
“I do not want to say anything at this stage that could jeopardise the agreement but I hope that this will be a good news story for the city because the preferred bidder is full on in its commitment to refurbish the centre – this would end a period of slight uncertainty over whether the planned redevelopment would continue after the sale of the Mander Centre.”
At present, only minimal refurbishment works have been conducted at the Mander Centre as part of a large scale £30 million redevelopment designed to make the shopping centre more attractive to customers.
Planning permission has been granted for the demolition of the Bell Street frontage in the south west corner of the complex in order to create an 8,360 sq ft department store which Debenhams has already expressed an interest in occupying.
In addition to this, a number of smaller units throughout the centre will be replaced by larger shops as a means of boosting rental income. Finally, a new retail kiosk will be constructed which fronts neighbouring Woolpack Alley and the mall in its entirety will be refurbished to create a more “consumer friendly” atmosphere.
Although the works to the centre, should a new buyer be found soon, are not likely to be completed by late 2017 at the earliest, industry experts have forecast that the opening of the new Debenhams store alone would create 120 jobs in the local economy. Taking into account job roles created by the construction phase, it is not surprising that the local council was keen to be involved in discussions with any potential buyers.
Delancey has so far chosen not to say anything more than that an offer has been submitted.
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