The Peterborough Evening Telegraph
New restaurant for Queensgate
Planning application submitted to city council
A major new city centre restaurant opening out onto the revamped St John’s Square could be created as part of the conversion works planned for Queensgate’s H &M store. An application has been submitted to Peterborough City Council for change of use of part of the soon-to-be-vacated unit, fromretailtocafe/restaurant use, which would see the disused Exchange Street frontage opened up.
The new 325 square metre venue would be yards away from the highly rated Clarkes and would join the likes of Carluccio’s, Pizza Express, WildwoodandNando’swhich have joined the ever-growing food quarter around St John’s Square and Cathedral Square in the past couple of years.
French bistro chain Cote Brasserie also joined the fray last month, with a £1mrestaurant opening across St John’s Square in Church Street, and work on a new Wagamama on nearby Long Causeway is well under way with a scheduled opening in the autumn.
However, Queensgate’s owners are staying tightlipped about which chain couldbemovinginiftheapplication - which would also see three new retail units created in the carved up H&M store, with accesss from inside the shoppingcentre- is approved.
H&M will be relocating its store in Queensgate later this summer. The H&M store in Peterborough is ownedbyRedevco, areal estate investment management company, but the firm said it will not com- ment now due to commercial sensitivities.
The latest application for a new restaurant or café was prepared by GL Hearn on behalf of Arioso UK General Partner LLP.
It says: “The site in its current usedoesnotbenefitfrom an active frontage.
“TheproposedA3use(restaurant/cafe) would enhance StJohn’sSquarewithanewactive frontage andwill increase activity in the northern section of the square.”
It adds that the proposal would “better integrate the QueensgateCentreonthehistoric streets.”