Anchor tenants unveiled for £300m Northgate scheme

An upmarket department store and a four-star hotel chain have signed up as anchor tenants for the £300m Chester Northgate regeneration scheme.Cheshire West and Chester Council has signed agreements to bring House of Fraser and a four-star Crowne Plaza hotel to the 500,000 sq ft redevelopment in the North West quarter of the city centre.House of Fraser plans to open a 100,000 sq ft store, which will include a rooftop restaurant with views over the racecourse and the Welsh hills. And an affiliate of MCAP Global Finance has agreed to launch a 167-bed Crowne Plaza hotel with a spa and a 600-capacity conference facility, which would be the biggest in the city.The planned regeneration of the city centre will provide 70 stores, cafes and restaurants, as well as a new cultural centre, 70 homes, a hotel and conference centre, a six-screen Picturehouse cinema and the city’s largest car park. Construction of the development is expected to start in late 2018, with phased completions leading up to late 2021.The council has already committed £100m into the redevelopment of the city centre, including the creation of an 850-seat theatre which forms part of a new cultural centre and is set to open in the spring, as well as the relocation of the bus station which is set to open in March.Chester Northgate is being developed by Cheshire West and Chester Council, assisted by development manager Rivington Land. JLL is the leasing agent acting for Chester Northgate. Strutt & Parker is the retained investment agent.