Tag Archives: Hammerson

Builders brand Gove’s latest CPO reforms as ‘desperation’

Posted on May 3, 2024 by insidecroydon

Our housing correspondent, BARRATT HOLMES, on how a ‘very un-Conservative’ policy shift has probably come too late to save Croydon town centre New powers handed to local authorities by the Conservative Government could, just, open the way for Croydon Council … Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Business, CPO, Croydon Council, Housing, London-wide issues, Planning, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Whitgift Centre, Whitgift Foundation | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Westfield begins ‘cover-up’ at Allders – with pop art hoardings

Posted on January 30, 2024 by insidecroydon

STEVEN DOWNES on the latest efforts by Westfield to make up for more than a decade of development blight After a 12-year wait, Westfield has finally started constructing something in Croydon town centre. Nothing as substantive, or as lasting, as … Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Allders, Art, Business, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Whitgift Centre | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 12 Comments

Croydon in 2023: Murder, school closures and Westfield blight

Posted on December 30, 2023 by insidecroydon

THE YEAR IN REVIEW Part 3 – September to December It’s not like there’s ever any shortage of stories to cover in Croydon. But even by this area’s usual standards, the news that Inside Croydon reported, often exclusively, in the … Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Art, Business, Crime, Croydon Council, History, Inside Croydon, Knife crime, Mayor Jason Perry, Whitgift Centre | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Croydon 2023: the Penn Report, dog attacks and those giraffes

Posted on December 29, 2023 by insidecroydon

THE YEAR IN REVIEW Part 2 – May to August If there was one good thing to come out of Croydon Council this year, then it must have been the Penn Report. Katherine Kerswell, the council’s chief executive, had held … Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Art, Borough of Culture 2023, Business, Crime, Croydon Council, Heathfield House, History, Inside Croydon, Knife crime, Mayor Jason Perry, Sarah Jones MP, Whitgift Centre | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

2023 in Croydon – as told through our best-read articles

Posted on December 28, 2023 by insidecroydon

THE YEAR IN REVIEW Part 1 – January to April The parlous state of the council’s finances would remain a thorny issue throughout the year, after Tory Mayor Jason Perry issued a Section 114 notice of his own in November … Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Allders, Birch (Selsdon), Business, Centrale, Crime, Croydon Council, Heathfield House, History, Inside Croydon, Knife crime, Mayor Jason Perry, Sarah Jones MP, Selsdon Park Hotel, Whitgift Centre | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Millionaire pulls plug on Mayor Perry’s ‘big idea’ for Allders

Posted on November 7, 2023 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: The businessman behind Secret Cinema folded five companies in August, as ambitious plans for the ‘turning point for the future of entertainment’ in Croydon’s dilapidated town centre are abandoned. By STEVEN DOWNES Jason Perry put on his … Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Allders, Business, Centrale, Croydon BID, Croydon Council, Mayor Jason Perry, Secret Cinema, Whitgift Centre | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 16 Comments

Westfield boss says Croydon scheme could take 15 more years

Posted on October 20, 2023 by insidecroydon

‘Sustainable’ plans for redeveloping the town centre could see as many as 30,000 new flats built, according to one council figure, but a scheme that was originally due to be completed in 2017 now might only be finished more than … Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Allders, Business, Centrale, Sean Fitzsimons, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Whitgift Centre | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 17 Comments

Hammer blow for Whitgift Centre with new delay to masterplan

Posted on October 18, 2023 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: No more ‘Death Star’-type, £1.4bn Westfield shopping mall say developers, who want to build ‘thousands’ of flats, as Paris-based firm looks for a more sustainable approach In a hammer blow to any hope of urgently rescuing the … Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Business, Centrale, Croydon Council, Housing, Mayor Jason Perry, Planning, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Whitgift Centre, Whitgift Foundation | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 24 Comments

Colonnades sold by council for £25m under purchase price

Posted on October 16, 2023 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: The Government-enforced fire sale of council assets is about to see the borough lose even more money, on a commercial property that has been making millions for the borough. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES Croydon’s Mayor and Tory … Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Croydon Council, Croydon Park Hotel, Improvement Board, Jane West, Property, Purley Way, Simon Hall, Tony McArdle, Waddon | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 13 Comments

After 54 years, Sainsbury’s enters final week in Whitgift Centre

Posted on October 7, 2023 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: The departure of one of the shopping centre’s ever-presents will only reinforce the feeling of decay and decline in the town centre Sainsbury’s has confirmed that the final day of trading for its Whitgift Centre store will … Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Business, Centrale, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Whitgift Centre | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 16 Comments

Sainsbury’s confirms it is to close Whitgift Centre store

Posted on June 13, 2023 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: Supermarket chain says it was a ‘difficult decision’ to close flagship shop – but at least they have five higher-profit ‘Local’ shops nearby. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES Britain’s second-largest chain of supermarkets has admitted that it can … Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Business, Centrale, Planning, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Whitgift Centre | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Perry admits he has failed to secure £540m debt write-off deal

Posted on May 17, 2023 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: After a year in office, the Tory Mayor told a Purley audience last night that he has failed to ‘fix the finances’ and he won’t be opening the local swimming pool without lumbering the area with another … Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Allders, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Mayor Jason Perry, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Whitgift Centre | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 26 Comments

What will the ‘new’ Westfield deal really mean for Croydon?

Posted on April 28, 2023 by insidecroydon

STEVEN DOWNES outlines some of the likely consequences of this week’s announcement that Paris-based Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield have bought out their former partners Hammerson for the redevelopment of the town centre In all the flurry of civic excitement over the announcement that … Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Business, Centrale, CPO, Croydon Council, Growth Zone, Housing, London-wide issues, Mayor Jason Perry, Mayor of London, Planning, Sadiq Khan, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Whitgift Centre | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

MP Jones: Time for Westfield to grasp Croydon opportunity

Posted on April 26, 2023 by insidecroydon

Sarah Jones, the MP for Croydon Central, today responded to the news that Westfield’s parent company had bought out Hammerson’s half-share in the Croydon Partnership, including the Centrale shopping mall, potentially removing the log-jam in the long-delayed redevelopment of Croydon … Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Business, Centrale, Croydon Central, Sarah Jones MP, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Whitgift Centre | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 12 Comments

Perry blasted after trying to take credit for Westfield’s new deal

Posted on April 26, 2023 by insidecroydon

Political correspondent WALTER CRONXITE on how elected Mayor’s grandstanding over a deal with which he had no involvement has been seen through by ordinary Council Tax-payers Croydon Mayor Jason Perry came under fire last night, as he tried to take … Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Business, Centrale, Mayor Jason Perry, Sean Fitzsimons, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Whitgift Centre | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Westfield seals deal to buy Hammerson out of town centre

Posted on April 25, 2023 by insidecroydon

Westfield’s parent company has this afternoon confirmed that they have bought out Hammerson, the owners of the Centrale shopping centre, from their half-share of the Croydon Partnership, the joint venture which has inflicted a decade’s worth of development blight on … Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Business, Centrale, CPO, Whitgift Centre | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Centrale’s owners set to sell-up to Westfield in cut-price deal

Posted on April 21, 2023 by insidecroydon

Our vacated shopping centre correspondent, MT WALLETTE, on the latest multi-million-pound boardroom manoeuvres over Croydon’s developer-blighted North End It has taken more than a decade, but Westfield’s hostile takeover of the Centrale shopping mall in Croydon town centre looks as … Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Business, Centrale, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Whitgift Centre | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

Westfield non-developers facing £5m fine for failed supermall

Posted on January 24, 2023 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: Council concedes it is virtually powerless over land-owners and developers for long-delayed regeneration scheme, as influential scrutiny chair admits her committee is not convinced things will change. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES The company formed 10 years ago … Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Business, Centrale, CPO, Croydon Council, Growth Zone, Heather Cheesbrough, Jo Negrini, Mayor Jason Perry, Planning, Property, Rowenna Davis, Tony Newman, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Whitgift Centre, Whitgift Foundation | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 24 Comments

M&S’s Whitgift future questioned after shift to Purley Way

Posted on January 17, 2023 by insidecroydon

A bullish £480m expansion plan for one of Britain’s biggest retailers, with ‘the right stores, in the right place, with the right space’, could mean more bad news for Croydon town centre. By our retailing correspondent, MT WALLETTE There’s growing … Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Business, Whitgift Centre | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 16 Comments

Town centre stations should be the focus for future vision

Posted on January 6, 2023 by insidecroydon

With more shops closing and others reducing their floor space in the run-down Whitgift Centre, ANDREW PELLING looks east for solutions to address the town centre’s retail decline The continued loss of retail outlets in Croydon comes as high street … Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Allders, Andrew Pelling, Boxpark, Business, Croydon BID, Croydon Council, East Croydon, Planning, TfL, Tramlink, Transport, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, West Croydon, Whitgift Centre, Whitgift Foundation | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 13 Comments

WH Smith is latest Whitgift Centre store to shut up shop

Posted on December 30, 2022 by insidecroydon

Our retailing correspondent, MT WALLETTE, on the latest (partial) closure on Croydon’s already badly run-down High Street WH Smith, one of the mainstays of the Whitgift Centre ever since it opened more than 50 years ago, is about to downsize … Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Business, Whitgift Centre | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

How ‘Lost’ soon became an apt metaphor for Perry’s mayoralty

Posted on November 22, 2022 by insidecroydon

CROYDON COMMENTARY: The council’s continuing financial woes are due in the main to the Conservative government’s policies nationally over the past 12 years, says reader DEREK THROWER So Part-time Perry, our Croydon Conservative Mayor, is lost in self-pity. We can … Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Allders, Art, Business, Croydon Council, LOST, Mayor Jason Perry, Whitgift Centre | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Mayor Perry has ‘second thoughts’ about investing in Croydon

Posted on November 21, 2022 by insidecroydon

‘Things are going to get worse before they get better,’ said the borough’s £81,000 per year part-time Mayor last week, as he begins to find his Town Hall task a bit of a struggle, reports WALTER CRONXITE, political editor Jason … Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Allders, Art, Boxpark, Business, CPO, Croydon Council, CVA, LOST, Mayor Jason Perry, Planning, Property, Whitgift Centre | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

The Whitgift Centre is on a roll in the build-up to Christmas

Posted on November 14, 2022 by insidecroydon

Centrale and Whitgift shopping centres have announced that they will be opening a free roller rink in Whitgift Square on Saturday November 25, to be a feature of festive activities in the town centre right through until Christmas Eve. It … Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Activities, Business, Centrale, Croydon BID, Whitgift Centre | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Waitrose’s closure is another nail in town centre’s coffin

Posted on November 11, 2022 by insidecroydon

Another nail in the coffin of Croydon as a retail centre will be hammered in place tomorrow, with the closure of the Waitrose supermarket on George Street. The closure was announced by the groceries arm of the John Lewis Partnership … Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Business | Tagged , , , , , , , | 16 Comments