Telford's Southwater development opens its doors
[gallery] "Telford is on the up," declared proud leaders today unveiling a landmark building in the £250 million Southwater development, changing the face of the town.
Excited residents gathered for the ribbon-cutting ceremony outside Southwater One, a gold-clad three-storey home for a 25,000 book library, Telford & Wrekin Council's customer First Point and a Costa Coffee outlet.
David Sidaway, the council's director of business and development, said: "Telford is on the up" as he revealed the creation of the Southwater retail and leisure destination would safeguard 400 jobs and create 350 new roles.
"This is taking Telford to a new level," he said of what has been hailed as a "vibrant heart for Telford town centre".
Families today flooded through the doors of the newly-opened Southwater One to grab a coffee, marvel at the colourful library and First Point and take in the views.
The gold-clad Telford & Wrekin Council building is the first of many grand openings at the £250 million Southwater development at Telford Town Centre.
On the first floor is a 25,000 book library with reading areas set to capture young imaginations – including a hot air balloon basket surrounded by cushions.
And interactive touchscreens put the world at your fingertips with free wifi.
Residents took in the colour-coded First Point with access to a number of council services alongside partner agencies like the Prince's Trust, the Royal British Legion, armed forces charity SSAFA, Citizen's Advice Bureau, the Red Cross and the Healthy Lifestyles Hub.
Katharine Gillespie, 34, of Dulwich Grange, Bratton, took a first look at the new building with her children Rosie, one, and Peter, three.
Peter admired the new chairs while his sister was engrossed in a picture book.
"It seems lovely so far, it's a beautiful building," said Mrs Gillespie. "I can definitely see us using it mainly for children's books.
"Usually we go to Wellington but we can get books there and drop them off here. It's handy because it's by the shopping centre so we can do everything in one go. We are off to the town park in a minute."
David Wright MP for Telford was at the official opening today. He said: "It is a great privilege as someone who comes from Telford to have the opportunity to cut the ribbon to open this spectacular building. It is totally transforming the environment between the shopping centre and the park.
"It makes that link between the park and the shopping centre and if you look at the quality of the architecture we can be incredibly proud of it. This is a huge initiative that will benefit the town for years to come. The area around the lake is stunning."
Outside the sun shone on the public spaces which were opened up to allow shoppers to meander from the shopping centre, past the new lake with its urban beach, through the town park's footpaths, play areas, adventure golf and high wire adventure course.
The 600-space multi-storey car park was already filling up and a pan-Asian buffet restaurant Mimosa, and a FairShare Credit Union have already opened.
Next on the agenda in coming weeks is a new Premier Inn hotel. And the 11-screen Cineworld Imax cinema is scheduled to open its doors on August 7.
Restaurants including Pizza Express, Harvester, Chimichanga, Zizzi, Bella Italia, Nando's and Wagamama are all scheduled to open to the public later this year.
The second phase of Southwater due in the next four-to-seven years will see another 350 spaces added to the multi-storey car park.
There will be more bars, restaurants and shops on the ground level as well as houses and an extension to The International Centre.
In eight to 15 years there will be more commercial ventures, homes and offices to create a "beating heart" to the town where people live and socialise.
Councillor Bill McClements, Telford & Wrekin Council's cabinet member for Finance and Enterprise, said: "This has been years in the planning and months in the construction and today represents a very significant and exciting day for the whole borough."
The opening schedule for Southwater:
11-screen Cineworld IMax will open on August 7 one of its first films will be Inbetweeners 2
The Premier Inn hotel is expected to open in early August, slightly later than originally scheduled
Restaurants along the bottom of Southwater One will open in mid-September
Remaining restaurants with open in early October, marking the end of phase one
