Halogen helps to secure green light for Centros Miller in Bury St Edmunds
An extensive public consultation process, co-ordinated by property PR & marketing communications strategists Halogen, was key to securing St Edmundsbury Borough Council approval for Centros Miller’s £85 million redevelopment of the 5.38 hectare Cattle Market site in Bury St Edmunds town centre, Suffolk
Speaking as consent was granted (February 2005), Centros Miller MD John Laker said: “Bury St Edmunds is a very sensitive and historic town in which the local people are naturally very protective of their environment. However, working in close partnership with St Edmundsbury Borough Council, and using extensive public consultation to help develop the masterplan and refine the detailed scheme, we have gained the support of the majority of the local population. We will now be working hard to progress our plans and aim to start construction at the beginning of 2006 and completion is scheduled for mid 2008”
Designed by Hopkins Architects, the scheme extends and enhances the town centre with 265,000 sq ft of new shopping, anchored by an 85,000 sq ft Debenhams department store and also including 35 new shop units, 850 car parking spaces, residential apartments and a new multi-use public venue building. Two new open shopping streets will lead from the town centre to a new public square which will create a new focus for leisure and retail activity for the town
Halogen organised the public consultation and managed the project’s public relations throughout the planning process. The four phases of public consultation included the innovative use of representative focus groups drawn from the electoral roll to balance the input of key interest groups in the initial masterplan stages. A major public exhibition with widespread publicity was organised to present the scheme at the detailed stage. Then a series of media advertorials were used to explain how the scheme had been refined in response to the consultation. Finally, an independent opinion poll of a cross-section of local residents — conducted by NOP World — revealed clear majority support for the development proposals
Montagu Evans advised Centros Miller on planning. The letting agents are Churston Heard and Mason & Partners. PDCM is project managing the development