£300m Meadowhall expansion halted as Covid-19 impact bites

By

Barbara Santamaria

Published
May 27, 2020

Plans for a £300 million expansion of Sheffield's Meadowhall shopping centre have reportedly been  put on ice by its owners.

It comes as co-owner British Land announced on Wednesday that it has collected less than half of the rent due on its retail properties as a result of the coronavirus shutdown.

The expansion project includes plans to add 330,000 sq ft to the shopping centre, creating restaurants, a cafe court, cinema and other leisure space.

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Meadowhall shopping centre, which generates £82 million a year in rent, is home to Britain’s leading fashion brands. But various tenants have collapsed since the start of the lockdown, with several including Oasis, Warehouse and Cath Kidston closing all UK stores.

According to TheBusinessDesk.com, the £300 million expansion is “unlikely to progress” in the medium-term as the Covid-19 crisis has left both retailers and landlords out of pocket.

The project has been in the planning for more than four years.

Meadowhall is jointly owned by British Land and the Government Pension Fund of Norway.