Wakefield Council’s Cabinet have confirmed that no plans will be progressed to purchase The Ridings Shopping Centre, and instead the Council will seek to work in partnership with any potential third-party buyer.
A report was considered by the Council’s key decision makers, which explored the potential for the Council to take a financial interest in the shopping centre, as part of its wider long-term regeneration plans for the city centre.
Due to the ongoing challenging financial environment for the Council, however, Cabinet have decided it is not the right time to pursue this and instead have instructed officers to explore different models for delivering the Wakefield City Masterplan, which guides future development and economic growth in the city centre.
Cllr Denise Jeffery, leader of Wakefield Council, said: “It has become clear that the impact of the huge financial challenges we are facing will be far greater than we have encountered before, with huge pressures on our budget and our ability to deliver services. Therefore, making this decision is a significant financial risk that we cannot take at this time.
“This site still remains a key area in our long-term regeneration plans for Wakefield and we want to support any potential buyer to help realise our ambitions for the city centre.”
The Council now seeks to work in partnership with any potential buyers, sharing it’s due diligence information to support a sale and to help influence any future development plans to ensure the best outcome for the city centre and long-term regeneration plans – in line with the Wakefield City Masterplan.
Cllr Jeffery added: “We will be exploring different options to help deliver our ambitious Masterplan for Wakefield and we are continuing to work with external funding partners and agencies in an effort to support the future of the Ridings site.”
