The new site for Oldham’s historic market has ‘impressed’ traders when they toured the building.
Tommyfield Market, on Albion Street, is set to relocate into Spindles Town Square Shopping Centre next year and stallholders were given a tour and the opportunity to sign a steel beam in their new workspace earlier this week.
The move is part of Oldham Council’s regeneration plan, which involved buying the shopping centre for £9.5m in 2020.
“It’s looking really impressive,” said Rick Whitmore, owner of Meat in the Middle butchers.
“I’m excited about the entrance coming in from Spindles and going down through the market. I think it will be superb when it’s all built.”
The decision forms part of the ‘Creating a Better Place’ strategy by the council which was established in January 2020, and plans to make £3m in revenue savings a year.
The Oldham market, which has been operating since 1788, will be redeveloped into a “split-level market”.
Ray Aslam, owner of sweet shop Kandy Kingdom, joined members of the Tommyfield Traders' Association on the tour. He said: “It’s exciting and it’s started to kick on now.
“Now we’ve had a look round we can plan how we’re going to set up and design our stalls.”
While Claire Robinson, who runs florist Blooming Dales, added: “It was really good to have a look round and see how things are progressing.
“It was a really nice idea by the council leader to let us all sign a steel beam that is going to be here forever.
“It’s coming along nicely and we’re really excited about the move."
In addition to the new home for Tommyfield Market, the Spindles redevelopment includes a new events space, archives and offices for Oldham Council staff as well as a co-working space for small businesses.
Council staff moving into the Spindles will free up the Civic Centre site for redevelopment, as part of the new partnership with Muse, to build 2,000 homes in the town centre with work starting soon.
Access Oldham will also be moving into Spindles, providing a more central location for residents to access vital services such as council tax, housing benefits and financial services.
Leader of the council Cllr Arooj Shah, who joined traders on the tour of the construction site, said: “I'm so happy to be able to join our fantastic Tommyfield traders and together mark this next step in the creation of our all-new market hall.
“We're making great progress and it's really starting to come together, alongside all the other fantastic redevelopments taking place in and around Spindles and Parliament Square.
“Within the Spindles shopping centre itself, new offices on the upper levels are now almost complete, while on the Parliament Square site, progress is quickly being made on the new market, events space and archives.”
She continued: “Then, just a stone's throw away, we have the refurbishment of the Old Library, the creation of our new theatre and the ongoing improvements to our streets and public areas to make them easier to get around and more enjoyable places to spend time.
“There's so much to look forward to and I can't wait to see the new market open its doors.”
Opposite the new market will also be the revamped Egyptian Room, with a street food-style food court, and the Cultural Quarter right around the corner, with the restored Old Library and new theatre.
The council’s town centre regeneration bids to unlock hundreds of millions of pounds in investment, as well as 1,000 new jobs and 100 new apprenticeships.
Have a story to share? Email me at joe.yates@newsquest.co.uk or follow me on Twitter @JMYjourno
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