Fort Shopping Park to be given more modern look
THE Fort Shopping Park is in store for a major makeover as bosses look to make a “considerable” investment to create a more modern retail site.
The out-of-town shopping park between Castle Vale and Bromford in Birmingham celebrated its 20th anniversary last year but its design has now been described as “dated” and “poor”.
Having trialled a new design concept for two empty units last year, The Fort Retail Park Trust has now filed a planning application to Birmingham City Council to roll out the scheme across most of its shops on the eastern side of the park, which includes brands such and Boots.
Essentially it would replace the prominent drum and tower features with a “family of terraced shops” under a raised canopy.
The works will create taller and more transparent shop fronts which will hopefully make them more attractive to shoppers.
It has not been stated how much disruption the redevelopment would cause to the affected shops, but park chiefs say tenants are being notified about how the proposed works would affect them so they can remain trading “where possible”.
Planning documents describing the problems with the current design state: “The appearance of the existing units are constrained by domi- as H&M, JD nant architectural drums above each store entrance, low level canopies and low shop windows, that provide poor visibility viewed along the terraced areas where landscaping and signage also block views to the store fronts to create an oppressive shopping environment.”
They add: “Following a review and appraisal of the existing park scheme, and the shop frontages in particular, the trustees wish to invest in the enhancement of the park based upon the designs established by the current Unit 5/6 works.
“The aspiration is to create a place that is an attractive and contemporary shopping environment, relevant to shoppers and prospective shoppers, as an appealing place to spend time.
“This is to be undertaken by enhancing the design of the shop fronts and helping to create an environment that is attractive to shoppers, thereby improving conditions for existing and future tenants.
“The scheme is conceived as a family of terraced shops under a stepped canopy, creating a more contemporary feel and presentation than the existing units can provide for today’s retailers.
“The existing scheme is dominated by a series of towers that relate poorly to the stores below; the scale of the towers is disproportionate to the shop frontages.
“The design criteria of the new scheme will address this by creating taller and more transparent shop fronts, with a more suitable and related canopy.”