A history of the failed schemes:
2005: Macclesfield Borough Council unveils the Silk Street Project; a major plan to develop the town centre.
NOVEMBER - Wilson Bowden Developments (WBD) were chosen as the ‘preferred development partner’ to work with the Council.
2007 - Macclesfield Borough Council and WBD sign agreement for town centre scheme.
2008 - WBD submit plans for town centre scheme but they are later withdrawn.
2012 - WBD come back with a new detailed planning application.
JANUARY 2013- The firm submit revised plans for the £90m scheme. Plans included a nine-screen cinema, four restaurants, shops and 10 homes.
There were also plans for a new town square, called Mulberry Square, 22 shops, and the promise of more than 1,000 jobs. MARCH 2013 - Around 1,000 residents take to the streets to protest against the plans.
SEPTEMBER 2013 - Planning committee approve the proposals. The then leader of Cheshire East Council, Michael Jones describes the Silk Street scheme as ‘a once-in-a-generation opportunity to radically revitalise and boost the economy of Macclesfield and unlock its potential’.
MARCH 2015 - Anchor tenant Debenhams pulls out of the scheme and plans for size of the Silk Street project are reduced by around a third.
JUNE 2015 - WBD ends its agreement with the council and will not build the scheme.
2016 - Ask Real Estate is chosen to take on the scheme after signing an agreement to buy Churchill Way car park. The outline proposals envisage a six-screen cinema, restaurants, a retail unit.
2017 - More detailed plans are submitted for the £19m scheme, which include a seven-screen cinema, eight units for cafes, restaurants and bars.
2018 - Ask Real Estate ends its agreement with Cheshire East Council and pulls out of the town centre