Architect will draw up plan for shops mall

The business consortium which has bought Central House - including the Broadway shopping centre - expects the first drawings of the ambitious scheme to be ready before autumn.

London-based architects Benoy will prepare the blueprint for the planned covered mall where British Homes Stores and C&A would remain among anchor tenants.

The consortium - headed by Knottingley-based Caddick Developments - is also trying to attract another new department store.

Caddick's development director Richard Weatherhead said today they hoped to include a food court in the complex and are carrying out a study of how to incorporate it.

He said the architects were specialists in major city centre shopping complexes.

Their briefs have included major developments in Manchester city centre and the Blue Water Complex in Dartforth.

Mr Weatherhead said: "We are very pleased with progress. We hope to be in a position to put forward a firm plan in the near future."

The company has signed up a development agreement with Bradford Council which owns the freehold of the land.

The authority would get a profit share when the complex began to trade.

The consortium has also submitted an offer to receivers for nearby Forster House which is in the hands of a receiver. The huge block includes Fatty Arbuckles.

And in a separate move, it was confirmed today that the former main city centre post office in nearby Valley Road may get a new lease of life as a restaurant and takeaway.

The building has stood empty since a new post office was opened in Darley Street earlier this year.

Agent for the property Tim Bleasdale said they were applying for planning permission to change the use of the building on behalf of its owners, Post Officers Counters.

Mr Bleasdale said they believed it had potential as a restaurant and wanted to market it with the benefit of planning permission.

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