Sutton Council has announced plans to transform and revitalise Sutton town centre through a mixed-use town centre scheme and is searching for a development partner.
Costed at £500m, the scheme will call for the redevelopment of the existing St Nicholas shopping centre, Civic Offices, Gibson Road car park and the vacant Secombe Theatre.
The developer will be expected to utilise 180,000 sqft of commercial space for the creation of new retail, leisure and office spaces.
Sutton Council is also seeking to establish a new Civic Hub on the High Street and has previously bought St Nicholas to ensure the Council’s control over the redevelopment ahead of the regeneration scheme.
Councillor Ruth Dombey, Leader of Sutton Council, said: “We are ambitious for our borough and our residents and this is the latest phase of our regeneration plans to create a vibrant, sustainable town centre we can all be proud of.
“This is a major opportunity to make the most of our town centre’s transport connections, links to London and our growing status as the world-leading cancer research campus with the London Cancer Hub at Belmont.
“Sutton is an exciting place to live, work and create the jobs, workspaces and homes that our residents and businesses deserve and want.
‘’There is a real buzz about the exciting changes we are starting to see in Sutton town centre and we want to build on that positivity and momentum with these plans for the St Nicholas Centre, Civic Offices and other sites.”
Open for everyone, the new Civic Hub will include council offices, a new town centre library and a venue space to host community activities and events.
Further details of the scheme’s phasing and construction programme will be finalised with the selected development partner.
Sutton Council has estimated that the process to find a development partner will take about 10 months, with a decision to be made in Autumn 2024.
Under current plans, construction is estimated to begin in 2026 and would take a number of years to complete.
This site is just one of several the Council has launched to regenerate Sutton Town Centre.
This past month saw the opening of Oru Space on Sutton High Street, an affordable office and exhibition space, hospitality, wellness studio and an intergenerational garden in the former British Home Stores building.
Work will also start at the Northern Gateway site to construct new premises for Sutton College alongside 22 new council homes.
