Councillor fears city centre plans could lead to 'collection of white elephants'

Last week, Bradford Council announced that it had purchased the Kirkgate Shopping Centre for £15.5m.

In the coming years Primark will re-locate from the 1970s centre to the former Debenhams unit in Broadway, and the Kirkgate Centre will be demolished.

In its space a mix of housing and green space – part of a planned “City Village” – will be installed.

The Council hopes the plans will reinvigorate a city centre currently plagued by empty units, and tie in with a new market opening next year, the Bradford Live music venue and One City Park office development.

Response has been mixed, with some welcoming the removal of the brutalist building and the new focus on a smaller retail core for the city.

But others have questioned the scale of the plans and the idea of turning a swathe of the city centre into housing.

Leader of the Liberal Democrats on Bradford Council Brendan Stubbs is among those to raise concerns.

He said: “You cannot live in Bradford without noticing the need for real change in the city centre. For too many years we have had empty shop fronts, and many more derelict upper floors.

“Major change is long overdue. Crime, Children’s Service, Social Care and Education are all areas of real concern and massive financial pressure for Bradford Council. Keeping these plates spinning requires a lot of effort and attention.

“Given the failure of the Labour administration to run core services people rely upon. Liberal Democrats believe they are not in a fit state to take on major redevelopment, especially not on their own.

“The plans announced this week would be a significant change for the city centre.

“On its own this project will not bring the change we need.

“We want to see the Council working to build safe, confident, and aspirational communities not just pet projects.

“Do the early plans for ‘Bradford City Village Regeneration Area’ deliver?

“We are not convinced they do. A village is more than a set of buildings it is a community. A community needs places to relax, to play and to meet. It needs to be a safe environment and offer opportunities for people to grow and succeed.

Many of the assumptions and numbers upon which the Kirkgate deal is based were made before the huge spike in inflation and economic pressures we have seen in 2022. There is a real risk of costs spiralling out of control.

“Most concerning is the total lack of partners public or private contributing to these plans. Nothing is confirmed for the Kirkgate site beyond 2024.

“There is clearly benefit for the Broadway Centre and Primark in bringing the two of them together. It is a lot less clear what the benefits are for the wider City Centre, other retailers, employees, and residents of the district.

“What’s more, failure to have a wider masterplan in place is most troubling. Work is already underway on Darley Street Market, One City Park and Bradford Live. Details of the demolition of the Hall Ings NCP have now been released too, yet a coherent plan that draws these developments together is absent.

“Our city is in real danger of having a collection of white elephants dotted around a city centre that continues to decline.

“It is not difficult to understand why so many have responded with cynicism to the administrations aim of creating family living, attracting young professionals and new public spaces. A brief walk through the city centre reveals people dinking in the streets, anti-social behaviour out of control and a general sense of decay and decline in most buildings. Few people would actively seek to bring their families or build a career in that environment.

“Major change is needed in Bradford City centre, but vague aspirations are not going to deliver. Residents and Liberal Democrat Councillors will need to see detailed evidence-based plans, serious backing from both private and public investors and the people in place that can deliver on them.

“Today all of that is missing.”