A car showroom burnt to the ground during the Bradford riots will rise again with a £4.5 million development in the city.

Bosses at JCT600, owners of the Lister Park BMW dealership which was looted and set alight by rioters, said the new flagship development underlined the firm's faith in Bradford.

The three acre development, which will include separate BMW and Mini showrooms plus a group training facility, is expected to open in June 2003.

It will be built on Sticker Lane, opposite the spot where company owner Jack Tordoff ran his first garage in 1946, and replace its current temporary home in New Brook Street, which was opened just two weeks after the riots.

The new development, which will secure 45 jobs and create an additional 15, was today hailed as a huge boost to the city.

Ian Stewart, chief executive of Bradford Council, said the news was a "massive confidence builder".

"I am delighted JCT600 has shown faith in Bradford and I hope it will be rewarded," he said.

"The company has done very well given the perilous position it was in and it is a tremendous example to other businesses."

John Pennington, chairman of Bradford Chamber of Commerce, said: "From an investment point of view this is excellent news for Bradford."

Details of the expansion were revealed as the firm announced an increase in turnover to £275 million, and record pre-tax profits of £7.15 million for the past 12 months.

JCT600 marketing manager Chris Gilliver said she hoped the firm's decision to invest in the city would encourage other businesses to follow suit.

The dealership saw 26 cars looted or burned out during the riots - and £5.5 million of damage caused.

"We could quite easily have walked away from Bradford after what happened last July," she said. "But Mr Tordoff was born and bred in Bradford, his core business is in Bradford, and it is where he wants to be.

"We have got a lot of BMW customers in this city who expect to be looked after and we wouldn't want to let them down. This move shows our confidence in the city and our faith in the Council's plans to move the place forward."

So far in 2002, JCT600's profits are already 13 per cent ahead of last year, and the firm is expanding into Sheffield, where it plans to open a £5 million Mercedes dealership.

"Not only has JCT 600 triumphed once again, in what has been a difficult year for the company, it has successfully turned what could have been a tragedy into a major triumph," said Mrs Gilliver.

Responsibility for driving the firm's expansion programme will fall to new chief executive John Tordoff, pictured.

He has taken over the day-to-day running of the business from his father Jack, the group chairman who named the firm after the private number plate JCT 600 that he bought for a Mercedes 600 in 1961.

Mr Tordoff expects to take turnover to £350 million within the next two years and increase staff levels to around 1,000.

Meanwhile, Sainsbury's main Bradford store was due to re-open today after a £3 million refit.

The improvements at the store on Harrogate Road, Greengates, have led to the creation of 30 new jobs and the addition of 1,600 new products.