Two further shop chains have announced they will open in the Bradford Broadway shopping centre as 200 local firms seeking contracts for the build prepare to meet developers Westfield next week.

Construction of the multi-million-pound city centre development is expected to create 1,500 jobs and companies will attend a Meet the Buyer event on Wednesday supported by Bradford Council.

Senior members of Westfield's design and construction team on the Bradford Broadway development will give a presentation to firms hoping to secure contracts and the company has again repeated its intention to start construction this year.

Ernest Jones, a new store to Bradford, and H.Samuel, which has a shop in Darley Street, are the latest tenants announced for the development.

They add to the River Island signing announced earlier this week. The store will expand into the Broadway site from its current location in the Kirkgate Centre. It is not yet known if H Samuel will close its existing shop in the city centre.

A spokesman for Signet, which represents both jewellers, said: “We continually re-assess our portfolio of stores on a store-by-store basis, particularly when individual store leases come up for renewal.”

Bradford Council leader David Green, said he “was clearly more than happy” at the announcement.

Meanwhile, Leeds City planning councillors meeting next Thursday to discuss plans to expand the White Rose shopping centre, near Leeds, will hear that Westfield is among objectors to the expansion. Plans for a multi-screen cinema, four new restaurants and the extension of the Debenhams and Primark stores, were unveiled in September 2012. The agenda for Thursday’s meeting says a letter of objection has been received on behalf of several developers and investors in Bradford city centre, including Westfield.

A spokesman for Westfield said: “Westfield, along with other Bradford developers, have objected to the planning application to extend the White Rose shopping centre on grounds of a harmful impact on Bradford city centre. The extension of White Rose, which is an out-of-town shopping centre, is contrary to the National Planning Policy Framework which is firmly focussed on prioritising and supporting town and city centres first.”

Coun Green said: “We’ve been concerned about the effect of the White Rose Centre on Bradford city centre since it got is original planning application. As a Council supported by traders in Bradford city centre, we’ve always raised concerns and objections to both the original development and any attempt to expand.”