Work begins on Southampton’s Regional Business Centre
12 November 2008
Demolition of the former C&A building on Northern Above Bar is due to begin. The site will be cleared to make way for Southampton’s new Regional Business Centre.
The modern six story office building will complement the remodelling and refurbishment of Guildhall Square and support the council’s plans to regenerate this area of the city as a cultural quarter. It will house Capita’s new state-of-the-art customer service centre on the ground floor, along with a restaurant / retail outlets with seating spilling into the square.
As the people of Southampton are beginning to see, the city is on the threshold of a major transformation which is being made possible by a number of significant developments. And while everyone is fully aware of the current financial climate, Southampton aspires to be a beacon of ambition for its residents, visitors, businesses and for other cities across the country.
The regeneration of key areas will benefit the city as a whole by providing jobs and skills for local people, improved housing, shopping and leisure facilities as well as the less tangible benefit of injecting some much-needed confidence and encouraging further investment.
Councillor Jeremy Moulton, Cabinet Member for Resources and Workforce Planning, said: “The new building will provide modern accommodation for city council and Capita staff and as well as that is an important component of the Northern Above Bar regeneration project. I am really pleased that demolition of C&A’s is going ahead and that we are on course for the new building in 2010.”
Large-scale developments such as the new Regional Business Centre are at the heart of what the city council wants to achieve in the coming years, contributing towards a unique sense of place, raising aspirations through employment and cultural opportunities, fostering engagement with the community and encouraging businesses to set up home in the area.
Image shows: Computer generated image of the proposed new Regional Business Centre
Image copyright: Capita Symonds
