Future Chatham can exclusively announce that a recent planning application reveals that Foot Locker are set to replace their existing store within the Pentagon Shopping Centre, Chatham, with a much larger store. Foot Locker is a leading global retailer of athletic footwear, apparel and accessories, stocking up with the likes of many desirable brands such as Nike, Adidas and Jordan. The company operates 3,363 stores on a worldwide platform across 28 countries, at the time of writing. Their existing store is located opposite anchor tenant Boots, but has very limited stock in comparison to other Foot Locker stores further afield. Documents as part of a recent planning application reveals that the vacant Phones 4 U and Ernest Jones units next to Coffee Republic will be merged to form one larger retail space. Customers will hugely benefit from the larger store, as it will deliver a much broader range of products in comparison to the existing cramped store, making shopping trips much more worth while. Located on a very prominent position, the new store will also add to the dynamic retail scene of the High Street and potentially act as a catalyst for further business owners across the town centre to invest into their stores. Artist impressions of the new store elevations show a remodelled store frontage to the currently two vacant units, with customer access via an entrance fronting the High Street and another inside the shopping centre. Picture Credit: Foot Locker Europe Future Chatham has approached Foot Locker Europe for confirmation on details such as the store opening date, although no response has been received yet.
To view the initial planning application, please visit the dedicated section of the Medway Council 'Planning Application Search Portal' online. Relaxed vibes. Smiles all around. And a mouth-watering smell of the hog roast. Those were only a few of the things to name that were all present at the Luton Millennium Green, as local residents attended a day out at the very heart of their community. Following on from last year's successful event, local community group, Arches Local, held their second Summer Event at the Luton Millennium Green last Saturday (July 8, 2017), packed with fun activities for families, live music, and plenty of food - not forgetting the buzzing atmosphere that welcomed many attendees. Picture Credit: Carl Adams Commenting on the success of the event last weekend, a spokesperson for Arches Local told us: "The summer event this year again was held at Luton Millennium Green which, as a community, we have been regenerating. It is Arches Local's annual summer event; the theme this year was around 'getting active'." "The event is about getting everyone together locally to enjoy a day of fun events. Most importantly, we want to raise awareness of Arches Local, hear about what people think and would like to see change in the area; so for the price of answering a few questions, people attending could sample the hog roast, entry to free raffle with great prizes, get face painted and lots of other fun activities." Many local residents attended the day out and were accompanied by a number of familiar faces within the community, including Councillor for Luton & Wayfield, Tris Osborne, as well as Councillor for Chatham Central and Medway Labour Leader, Vince Maple. Arches Local's spokesperson continued by saying: "The day was a great success with even more people than last year and like all our best work, it was brought about by working in partnership with others. So thanks goes out to Medway Council, Medway Sport, Medway Youth Service, SanFran Fitness, Retraceuring Steps Parkour, The Facepainters Danielle and Kelly, Louise at HogRoasting, D&A Toys, Magpie Growers, C & S Crafts, All Saints Community Project, Copperhouse Activity Training, Victory Academy, Aspire Parent Group, Future Foundry, Music for Change, and apologies for any I may have forgotten." "Most importantly, the biggest thanks go to the Arches Local community for coming out and making it such a special day. We hope people enjoy the fun activities we have planned in the park over the summer and look forward to seeing you all again next year!" Over a year since the wall collapse along Listmas Road, a planning application has finally been put forward outlining plans to reconstruct the damaged section of the retaining wall. The garden wall of the Magpie Community Centre in Magpie Hall Road unexpectedly collapsed onto the pavement below during the late hours of Janurary 7, 2016, prompting a swift response from the emergency services. Since the initial collapse, a large amount of rubble was removed from the site. A temporary wooden structure with concrete blocks was installed as a measure to shore up the remains of the retaining wall to prevent further damage and ensure the safety of passersby. Future Chatham understands from Tris Osborne, Councillor for Luton & Wayfield, that the repair works were predominantly delayed due to a 'dispute between Diocese [of Rochester] and [the] insurance company'. It was unclear which party's legal responsbility it was to undertake the repair work to the damaged wall. However, Medway Council recently received a planning application from the Diocese of Rochester requesting permission for the construction of a 3.5m retaining wall - a major sigh of relief for many agonised local residents. The application proposes to rebuild the wall using interlocking concrete blocks, with brickwork facing onto Listmas Road to match the existing wall. Weep holes will also be installed to ensure sufficient drainage, and a light-weight backfill will be used to reduce the pressure on the wall.
Although there are currently arrangements in place to prevent access to the temporary works area, the application states that the contractor will need to liaise with the Highways officer in order to agree a suitable works area within the public highway when undertaking the wall construction. Subject to planning consent, the reconstruction works were planned to commence during the summer months. No specific date has been confirmed yet. To view the original planning application, please feel free to visit the dedicated section of Medway Council's search portal. |
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