More delays hit Nuneaton town centre regeneration...

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The shops on Bridge Street were due to start being pulled down at the end of this week



More delays have hit a regeneration project in Nuneaton town centre. Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council previously confirmed that the demolition of shops on Bridge Street was due to start 'at the end of February'.

But with no sign of any diggers near there, CoventryLive asked the council to confirm if the scheduled demolition works are still due to go ahead.

In a statement, a council spokesperson said it had been delayed due to 'matters still outstanding'.

Now the works are not set to start until the middle of March. This is the latest delay to hit the project.

Green hoarding has been around the units, opposite the old Debenhams store, for months with the works due to start in October last year.

This did not happen and now the most recently planned demolition will not start until the middle of March.

“With regard to Bridge Street, party wall matters are still outstanding, we are looking at middle of March to be back on site," the council spokesperson said.

“However, there are some surveys taking place this week.’’

The is the only current phase of the 'Bridge to Living' project, which takes in part of Bridge Street, Church Street and the memorial gardens.

The council's vision was to 'open up' the area towards the George Eliot Memorial gardens by getting rid of the shops. However, the regeneration project has been hugely scaled back and has no further phases past demolition.

This is because the council took just over £3.5m was taken from the project to help pay for phase two of the Grayson Place development in nearby Abbey Street.

There have been no new plans revealed for any next phase of the 'Bridge to Living' project.

https://www.coventrytelegraph.net/news/local-news/more-delays-hit-nuneaton-town-33489725

TLDR: There's no money left and never will be!

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Row over Nuneaton's Grayson Place regeneration as food hall 'anchor' talks continue



A row broke out over Nuneaton's Grayson Place regeneration project as food hall 'anchor' talks continue. The multi-million pound project off Abbey Street has been ongoing for several years.

The first phase saw the Hampton-by-Hilton hotel built and then opened in September 2024 and works for. Phase 2 which includes the 'leisure box', which is going to be padel tennis courts, as well as the glass fronted food hall, are ongoing.

The regeneration project was discussed during a borough council cabinet meeting at the Town Hall last night (March 4) and Keith Kondakor, who is a county councillor, claimed there were drainage issues on the site.

"I have been following Grayson Place for a long while and I remember during Covid expressing concern about various bits and pieces, particularly the multi-storey car park that is not happening.

"But one thing that did happen is we have got surface car parks which are not built with proper drainage because they have put down temporary structures.

"Drainage is always thing I worry about there, in the report it mentions drainage with the food court, if you build a large amount on non permeable surface, you will have drainage issues.

"The original Grayson Place designs had rain guards, areas for water for to find their way to soak away, I am really concerned that we are building an area which could generate flood problems there and the neighbouring areas.

"So if we have any land free in Phase 3, which won't happen, we should be thinking about drainage for the site."

He also raised eyebrows about the actual cost of Grayson Place project as it is not broken down in any detail in any current council report.

"I think we need a bit more clarity on what is happening," he said.

Council leader, councillor Steve Hey said:" I am sure we will be getting a full report on Grayson Place in due course."

In regards to the claims made about drainage issues on the site, Cllr Chris Watkins hit back and said "He is spreading misinformation again.

"When we took over control in May 2024, Phase 3 wasn't looked at but we have took some of Phase 3 into Phase 2 so a lot of that will be developed.

"Who says there is no drainage there except for county council Kondakor. We have looked at all of the drainage and we are quite happy with the designs ahead. Who says there is going to be no rain guards? Again, county councillor Kondakor.

"We will see what the final designs bring. We have done a really good job of turning this around and now a lot of Phase 3 will be taken into account when Phase 2 is done and the drainage will be fine."

While remaining tight-lipped on who this and how many units it will take in the food hall, Cllr Watkins gave an update on the food hall at the meeting.

He proposed that delegated authority permission is given to the director for housing and community safety and also the business and regeneration cabinet member to progress the negotiations with the 'identified anchor tenant' for the food hall.

Adding that any prospective future tenants would be approved in future reports that would need cabinet approval.

https://www.coventrytelegraph.net/news/local-news/row-over-nuneatons-grayson-place-33533749

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Council explains why there are still no diggers at Nuneaton town centre demolition site



The hoardings have been around the buildings on Bridge Street that have been earmarked for demolition for months

Council bosses have explained why there are no diggers at a Nuneaton town centre demolition site. The demolition of the buildings on Bridge Street wrapped in green hoarding has been ongoing for months and hit by delays.

At the last time of asking Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council told CoventryLive that it expected to be on site in Bridge Street 'by the middle of March'.

We contacted the council this week, which is mid March, to find out what was happening with the demolition. A spokesperson said that there are surveys still ongoing.

This means that no date has been set for the formal demolition of the row of buildings, which is the only confirmed phase of the Bridge to Living project, which is due to open up the area into the George Eliot Memorial gardens and stretch of the River Anker.

“While it looks as though there is no works taking place, necessary surveys and dialogue with the EA to ensure the necessary conditions have been met are being undertaken pending the start of the formal demolition.’’

The Green hoarding has been around the units, opposite the old Debenhams store, for months with the works due to start in October last year. But this was pushed back to February, then mid March.

The council has yet to publicly state when the demolition works will now take place.

https://www.coventrytelegraph.net/news/local-news/council-explains-still-no-diggers-33615733

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'Entertainment area' in new Nuneaton town centre public plaza 'under review'



'An 'entertainment area' in new Nuneaton town centre public plaza is being reviewed.

Original plans for the events area had seating, an area suitable for a stage and would have capacity for around 2,000 people in the heart of the huge Grayson Place regeneration on the old Co-op car park off Abbey Street.

But this now may change as the Town Hall as confirmed that design options, including costs, are being looked at and a 'preferred option' will be presented to the council's cabinet later this year.

Cabinet members will then decide what plan, if any, goes ahead, a council spokesperson said.

“Design options for the remaining public realm works are currently being developed and assessed to understand their costs and deliverability," a council spokesperson said.

"It is anticipated that preferred options will be identified by early Autumn, at which point they will be presented to the council’s cabinet for consideration and a formal decision on how to proceed."

The public realm area is just one part of the regeneration project, which includes a new North Warwickshire and South Leicestershire College (NWSLC) digital innovation centre and restaurant on the site.

The 'large grey building' was supposed to play home to a new cinema, but the council pulled the plug on the deal and now it will be a new padel tennis court.

There will also be a championship court and also additional outdoor courts.

While the main indoor padel court building has been finished and a deal signed, it still needs to be fit out.

There is also the new glass fronted food hall on the site. The council has yet to confirm tenants after it previously said it was in talks with an 'anchor tenant'.

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Nuneaton town centre pub refurb complete - but its future is unclear



Work has finished at a former Nuneaton town centre pub - but its future remains unclear.

Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council owns the former old India Red pub and planned for it to be part of the nearby Grayson Place regeneration on the old Co-op car park.

The original plan was to put the building out to market for either pub or restaurant use and it would form part of a gateway into the regeneration project area.Work has finished at a former Nuneaton town centre pub - but its future remains unclear.

Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council owns the former old India Red pub and planned for it to be part of the nearby Grayson Place regeneration on the old Co-op car park.

The original plan was to put the building out to market for either pub or restaurant use and it would form part of a gateway into the regeneration project area.

But it had to carry out works to the roof, which was in desperate need of repair.

Due to spiralling costs of the Grayson Place project, the , the proposed £350,000 revamp of the former pub, which had many guises including the Courtyard, Silks Wine Bar and Woody's, had to be funded via the Corporate Capital Property Programme and not Grayson Place budget itself.

The roof works have now been complete, but the plans to put it out to market appear to have been put on hold - for now.

In a statement provided to CovenrryLive, a spokesperson for Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council said: "The roof replacement works have now been completed.

"An appraisal is currently underway to assess the building’s future use and/or specification. This work is expected to be completed during July 2026, after which the findings will be reviewed and any next steps considered."