Food hall planned for shopping centre

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A BIG new food hall is planned for Cheltenham’s Regent Arcade shopping centre.

Managers have submitted a planning application to the borough council to amend previously approved plans for its former British Home Stores unit.

Work has begun on opening up access to that unit, on the ground floor of the southern part of the centre.

Large holes have been knocked through the centre at this point to create an access area.

It had been planned to have three units for restaurants, but the arcade now says its latest thinking is to have the food hall there. It has therefore applied to vary a condition attached to its planning permission, enabling it to create a larger unit to serve as a food hall that would contain 10 street food outlets, coffee shops, a bar and an entertainment space.

The arcade said the food proposed for the hall would not be fast-food.

Scott Lahive, the centre manager, said: “We are proposing a high-end, continental-style foodhall for the Regent Arcade. This first-of-its-kind venue will provide a platform for street food traders who aren’t represented in Cheltenham, showcasing the best of the region’s food scene. The plans are evolving and we hope to be able to provide further detail in due course.”

While the food hall could be coming to the ground floor of the former BHS space, what was the store’s basement is to become a boutique cinema.

Run by TIVOLI Cinemas, it is due to open next April.