New owners plan town centre improvements

IMPROVEMENTS look set to be made in Clevedon’s town centre with the news new owners have taken over part of the area.

A section of the Queens Square shopping precinct, along with some shops in Kenn Road and the site on which Morrisons sits, has been bought by a partnership between Development Securities and The William Pears Group.

They bought it in August as part of a large property portfolio worth about �100million and are now looking to breathe new life into the area.

Development Securities is one half of the partnership which also owns Nailsea’s Crown Glass Shopping Centre, where �500,000 has recently been spent refurbishing and marketing the previously-empty Sion office building in the town.

Representatives of the partnership, along with letting agent for both the sites, Ian Thompson, recently met with Clevedon town councillors to discuss what could be done to revitalise the square and attract more business to it.

Mr Thompson said: “We have just got our feet under the table and want to understand what the council and local population want to see in the square.

“In the future, we will look to consult on the various plans we will come up with.

“The town council is encouraging us to work with them to bring about improvements it really needs.

“The company has demonstrated its willingness to invest with the refurbishment of the Sion building in Nailsea.”

Since buying the Clevedon site, the partnership has already began marketing an office block above Boots and Thomson travel agents, which has remained empty since 2005, reducing the rent to encourage business into the building.

Mr Thompson has said they are also keen to fill the vacant former Johnson’s Dry Cleaner unit as soon as possible.