How the town centre could have looked

Multi-million pound plans to redevelop Stevenage town centre have been scrapped.

Stevenage Borough Council announced yesterday that a £250m scheme for the shopping area has been pulled by Stevenage Regeneration Limited (SRL) because of the continuing adverse economic conditions.

The plans which included realigning streets, moving the bus station and building a new department store, cinema, hotel, restaurants and flats were given council planning approval in January.

Council leader Sharon Taylor said: “It is disappointing that due to market conditions our partnership was unable to deliver SRL’s scheme but we appreciate the support that SRL have provided to date and understand that the recession has forced them to make this difficult commercial decision.

“However, regenerating the town centre is critical to the future of Stevenage and remains a key priority for the council. We are therefore actively and urgently considering a number of options to bring forward new opportunities for development.”