The long-awaited opening of Newton Abbot’s new Market Hall remains on hold while ‘due diligence’ is carried out around its future operations.
Shoppers in the town have expressed their frustration on social media as the new market building sits empty.
But the councillor leading the project today insisted: “We understand the frustrations but we’d rather do this slowly and get it right.”
The regeneration of the town centre Market Hall was funded by £5million from the government’s Future High Streets Fund, and was completed in June.
An opening date had been pencilled in for the autumn, but Teignbridge Council is still going through the formalities.
Frustrations have been aired on social media, where one comment said: “Surely you’d have done your due diligence and had this sorted in time for completion of the building work? At the moment it’s another white elephant.”
Another said: “If this was a privately-owned building tenants would have been lined up before the work was even finished. No excuse for these delays.”
And another comment added: “This isn’t a situation which has suddenly come from nowhere. The council has had YEARS to get its act together for this project.”
Cllr David Palethorpe (Lib Dem, Ipplepen), the council’s executive member for economy and major projects, said: “We understand the frustration people feel. However, we’d rather do this slowly and get it right to secure the successful, long-term future of the market.
“And, much like a house purchase, you carry out due diligence, which can take longer than initially foreseen due to complex legal frameworks.”
Cllr Palethorpe said no rent prices have yet been decided. They will be set by the operators that take on the market, not by the council.
“This is one of the reasons we have to carry out rigorous due diligence to ensure the market is in a position to be run sustainably going into the future,” he added.
And, he said, the council was working with organisations keen to take on the market.
“It’s very important we carry out rigorous due diligence and take the correct and proper advice to protect the taxpayer and ensure the long term future of the market,” he added. “In terms of not enough traders being interested in moving in, the new market operator will be responsible for selecting the traders who will be moving into the market.”
When it does open, the market will feature dedicated street food units, a bar, a café and up to ten fixed stalls alongside flexible spaces for day-traders, craft markets and community events.
A spectacular central staircase will be its stand-out feature.
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