Developer PBN Holdings is spearheading a revival of the West One Retail Park by proposing a new footbridge across the busy Gilda Brook Road into Eccles town centre and a new Tesco Extra store on the site, which would create a minimum of 400 new jobs.

A planning application will be submitted in the next few weeks outlining proposals for a Tesco Extra Regeneration Partnership store, footbridge and other new pedestrian links, which, if successful, should help to claw back a significant amount of retail expenditure which is currently lost to other more high profile centres nearby.

Local people are being urged to come and give their views at an exhibition at the end of the month.

Patrick Kearney, Director of PBN Holdings and the owners of the West One Retail Park said, "We have been working with the local Council and Tesco for many months to find ways to transform West One and integrate better into Eccles town centre. We are now ready to provide details of our proposals and seek the views of local people through a public exhibition of the scheme. This £XXm investment will not only transform West One, it will also provide a major boost for local employment and help to prevent the current leakage of customer spending from Eccles."

The proposed 8,214sqm Tesco store would create around 400 permanent new jobs for the area and have the environment at the heart of the store's design by using state-of-the-art technologies to reduce its carbon footprint.

A special recruitment scheme would target the long-term unemployed, with help and advice given on making the application and interview skills. Recruits who complete a six week training programme would be guaranteed a job.

Tesco Regeneration Partnership stores particularly focus on improving numeracy and literacy skills and provide opportunities for lone parents, older people who have been made redundant, people who have never worked before and those with disabilities.

Tesco's partnership approach has already been hugely successful nationwide, creating over 4,000 new jobs at ‘Regeneration Partnership' stores, with the latest store being Cheetham Hill in Manchester.

Tesco Corporate Affairs Manager Deborah Hayeems said, "We are delighted to be partnering PBN Holdings on drawing up a scheme that will revive the West One Development and provide a pedestrian link to the town centre as well as bring a brand new Tesco to Eccles that will create hundreds of new jobs for the area."

Deborah continued, "In these tough conditions we feel that our Regeneration Partnership, through which we ring-fence a large number of jobs for people out of work or on benefits for at least six months, is more important than ever.  Particularly in a climate where many people are worried about job security, we are delighted to be creating further employment in the greater Manchester region."

Members of the public are invited to view the proposed plans, which will be on display at a public exhibition on Wednesday 28^th January (1.30pm-6pm); Thursday 29^th January (12 noon-7pm) and Saturday 31^st January (9.30am-2.30pm) at the Eccles Gateway, Barton Lane.

January 2009