A walk around 'Tesco town' and the masterplan to improve its left-behind areas

manchestereveningnews.co.uk:

They call it Tesco town. It’s been 12 years since the supermarket giant moved to Middleton as part of a major regeneration project that also delivered the town’s £13m Arena - a state-of-the-art leisure and entertainment complex.

Veteran councillor Peter Williams admits it was a huge decision to welcome a sprawling retail site - complete with nearly 500 parking spaces - into the heart of the town. But he is in no doubt it was the right one.

“The net result is a lot of footfall in Middleton now,” he says. “There’s not a shop shut in the Gardens area and the footfall is massive, because we made the brave decision of putting the big supermarket that we really needed in the town centre.

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“People were going all over the place, but not shopping in Middleton - and that made a big difference.” Guiding the Local Democracy Service around the town centre with fellow councillors John Blundell and June West, it is clear Coun Williams is happy with the impact it has had on areas such as Middleton Gardens and Long Street.

But not everywhere has felt the benefit. “Since then there are parts of the town centre that really need improvement and investment - a reason to be there,” adds the Labour councillor.

That could be about to change, however, with the development of a new masterplan, which he hopes will bring a ‘second phase of investment’ to those left behind areas. While the Barton Road Tesco superstore may be a testament to modernity, Middleton is known for its ‘Golden Cluster’ of heritage, including Grade I listed St Leonard’s Church and the 17th Century Olde Boar’s Head.

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