South Wales Evening Post - 21 February 2009
Swansea's oldest department store is yet to sign up to the city's new £30 million shopping centre, amid claims the roof is leaking.
Just two of the three anchor stores have signed up to the new centre in Princess Way.
While work has already started on fitting out the stores which will be the new Swansea homes of Slater Menswear, and fashion giant Zara, the city's historic department store JT Morgan has yet to commit to the scheme.
The three companies have long been described as anchor tenants for the 70,000sq ft Princess Way venture on the former David Evans site.
However, JT Morgan — the oldest independent store in Wales — has hired its own engineer to take a close look at the new shopping centre.
The company's managing director John Coles said the deal wouldn't be signed until the company was satisfied with the building.
He said: "Last time I was in there with our engineer, the roof was leaking and the escalator wasn't working properly.
"Being an independent, we want to make sure the building is right."
However, developers behind the site have refuted the claims, saying the building is watertight.
Mr Coles added that he was confident JT Morgan would take its place in the new centre.
He said: "We are still in discussion with developers Thurleigh. It is under offer to us. We are still hoping to move in."
The much-loved David Evans store closed its doors in January 2005, with demolition of the building starting in February 2007.
The shell of its replacement is now complete, and interior work has begun, with the Slater Menswear unit already being fitted out. It had originally been hoped the complex would be open in time for Christmas, but heavy rain was blamed for a six-month delay.
The shops, being built by London-based Thurleigh Estates, are seen as playing a vital part in the regeneration of the city centre.
However, JT Morgan is yet to sign, and it is not yet known which other businesses will be moving into the remaining three units.
Martin Evans, a director of Thurleigh Estates (Swansea), said: "The new retail complex building on Princess Way is wind and watertight and the escalators are in full working order.
"Both Slaters and Zara have now started fitting out their units, and positive talks with another major retailer about taking up a further unit are ongoing."
We Say
(Editorial)
WALES’S oldest department store — Swansea’s JT Morgan — has yet to sign on the dotted line for a place in the city’s newest shopping centre.
Slaters Menswear is moving in. So, too, is a long-awaited branch of the Spanish-owned Zara fashion chain.
But not, for now at least, JT’s.
Its bosses say they still want to make the move, but that is different from actually signing the deal.
It’s a nervous time for everyone in the retail trade and the Swansea shopping centre is not the only new venue that could open this year with some empty units. Liverpool is another case in point.
Locally, the sad demise of the old David Evans store is still being felt in Swansea and there is little doubt that there is a lot of fondness for department stores.
Let’s just hope this setback is a short-term one, and that better news emerges about the scheme very quickly.
