Hunt starts for £1bn Barking town centre builders

Barking and Dagenham Council has started the hunt for a select list of builders to deliver its ambitious £1bn town centre rebuild plans.The council’s wholly owned urban regeneration company Be First aims to create a panel of contractors to deliver over 40 projects.Town centre regeneration plans have been drawn up by architect Weston Williamson + Partners.These have the existing listed station building at its heart, with 2,200 new homes, together with new commercial and social infrastructure, all connected by over 2 hectares of new clean, green, accessible open spaces.The masterplan includes significant over-track development – creating a series of urban quarters linked by a reinvigorated high street and capillary routes.Plans include several commercial and residential high rises with significant over-track developmentBe First plans to split the construction framework into two lots, one covering projects worth up to £20m and the other projects valued at over £10m.Lot one has an estimated value of £250m over the next four years, while Be First expects Lot 2 to account for up to £750m worth of projects.Interested firms have until 9 July to complete proqual documents, available on the e-sourcing site. Email contract Stephen Howells.Meanwhile Be First has also confirmed the appointment of architects to deliver the next phases of the Gascoigne Estate East rebuild, known as the Weavers Quarter.White Arkitekter will deliver the detailed design for phase 2 and HTA Architects delivering phase 3 of the scheme which involved over 500 homes.In total the estate renewal will see over 1,575 new homes being built, along with the new primary and secondary schools, an energy centre, community centre, play areas and retail space.The project is scheduled for completion by 2024.