A Nottinghamshire council will formally accept £20m from the Government in ‘levelling up’ cash to transform a derelict former department store site.
Mansfield District Council was awarded the Levelling Up Fund money from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) in January.
The Labour-run authority will use it to redevelop the derelict former Beales department store, in Queen Street and Stockwell Gate, into a public sector ‘hub’.
Once complete, the regeneration project will see the authority leave its Civic Centre headquarters, in Chesterfield Road South, and relocate to the building.
It will open up 11,000 sq m of re-purposed space with more than 7,000 sq m available for community, education, business and health uses.
The authority is expected to be joined by other organisations like Nottinghamshire County Council, the NHS and the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).
It is expected to become a “one-stop-shop” for public services in the heart of the town centre and help to improve footfall in the market town.
Now the council will formally accept the Government cash and begin progressing with the project.
New papers reveal an agreement needs to be signed with Whitehall about how the cash will be spent and returned by March 10.
This stipulates the money can only be used to fund the project itself and bring forward the new hub.
The authority plans to sign this document during a delegated decision on Tuesday (February 28), which will also lead to the £20m cash being accepted.
The decision will also allow the council to continue developing the wider business case for its Civic Centre relocation and to work out how it will co-locate with other organisations.
A project management firm and design teams can also then be appointed to bring the scheme forward.
Councillor Craig Whitby (Lab), cabinet member for corporate and finance, will take the decision on Tuesday.
In a report, Martyn Saxton, the council’s head of planning and regeneration, said: “The council’s submission … will bring partners, agencies, residents and communities together, reactivating Mansfield town centre.
“[It will also] drive transformational change in service delivery across the district, breed new confidence in the town and further unlock Mansfield’s entrepreneurial opportunities.
“There are no specific conditions contained in the initial offer of funds, being subject to the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding.
“The council is developing the business case on the implications of the project, involving the relocation of the council and the co-location of a range of partners.
“A formal decision to relocate from the Civic Centre will be the subject of a separate report.”
Andy Abrahams (Lab), the district’s executive mayor, also previously welcomed the scheme when the cash was confirmed.
He said: “The building has long needed re-purposing and will be brought back to life to rejuvenate our town centre.
“This will then have a knock-on effect, stimulating our economy and encouraging private-sector investment into the district.”
Mansfield was one of four authorities to receive Levelling Up Fund cash in last month’s announcement.
Ashfield District Council received £3.1m for a new planetarium in Sutton but had its £11m bid for Hucknall turned down.
Bassetlaw District Council was awarded £18m to transform parts of Worksop and build new community facilities.
And town centre improvements, new industrial units and cycling upgrades will come to Kimberley after Broxtowe Borough Council got £16.5m.
However, some areas missed out on the cash – including Nottingham City Council’s combined £57m bids for Bulwell, the Broad Marsh Centre and the Island Quarter development.
Gedling Borough Council also missed out on its £20m plan to build a replacement leisure centre and theatre in Arnold.
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