Multi-million pound plan to expand Clock Towers

A DEPARTMENT store and a nine-screen cinema could be coming to the town centre as part of an ambitious £20 million proposal to extend the Clock Towers shopping centre.

The extension, if approved, will be situated on the corner of North Street and Evreux Way, the site occupied by the Cemex building and formerly by Gala Bingo.

The department store and cinema will comprise the upper level, with the lower level dedicated to an open-air area featuring leisure-based stores such as coffee shops. The entire development is expected to create up to 300 jobs.

Clock Towers Centre Manager Tony Spencer said: “The extension will give the town centre what it's been crying out for for years, and create the critical mass of shopping that Rugby needs to keep people in the town centre for both the retail and night-time economy.

“It's really what we now need for a town of this size to move on to the next level.”

The project will add a further 132,000 sq ft to the centre's existing area of 230,000 sq ft.

The site was approved for retail expansion by Rugby Borough Council in its Core Strategy for Rugby, adopted in 2011.

The proposal also includes plans to refurbish the existing shopping centre, including lifts, lighting, tiling, car parking and the notoriously leaky roof.

Mr Spencer added: “The great thing about this is that it will create a boost for the night-time economy, which has been declining for some time.

“To redevelop the corner of North Street and Evreux Way will give the entrance into the town a great feel.”

Buy photos» The development's open-air square, which will be home to cafes and coffee shops

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