Mansfield's Rosemary Centre looks set to be demolished to make way for new retail development

Plans have already been given the green light to build a hotel with three catering outlets on the neighbouring former bus station site – and owners of the Rosemary Centre have already been in consultation with the hotel developers to ensure the two schemes are complementary.

According to documents submitted to Mansfield District Council, the site will make way for a Lidl supermarket, another retail unit and a food outlet.

Developers, Peveril Securities, which currently owns the site on Rosemary Street, close to Walkden Street, say the location is still used for retail, but its upper storeys – traditionally used for employment purposes – are now largely empty.

The report states: “The application site comprises the Rosemary Centre building and its rear car parking area which lies immediately to the north of the bus station in the centre of Mansfield.

“The Rosemary Centre building is ground and three storeys. Whilst it has historically been used and still is, at ground floor level, for retail purposes, the floors above have been in employment uses.

“The majority of the upper floors are now vacant, despite the best efforts of Peveril to secure tenants. Iceland and Domino’s Pizza currently have premises at ground floor level.

“The Rosemary Centre building has been in place for circa 70 years and has reached the end of its natural life, so it, together with its associated car park lying to the rear feeding on to Union Street, is intended to be completely redeveloped.

“The application submitted seeks consent for the demolition of the Rosemary Centre building and its redevelopment.”

Access to the site will remain via Rosemary Street and Walkden Street, but a new mini-roundabout would be installed to allow separate access to the new Rosemary Centre development, or the new hotel, being constructed by ARBA Developments.

It is not yet clear whether Iceland and Dominos Pizza, which currently occupy the retail units at the existing Rosemary Centre, will move into the remaining units if the plans are given the go-ahead.

The application also includes details of car parking, landscaping and pedestrian routes through the site, allowing access to the rest of Mansfield town centre.

Until 120 years ago, the location was used for housing and allotments and later became an iron foundry and lace factory until the 1950s, when they were demolished to make way for the current building.

It was initially used as a mill until 1976, when it became the Rosemary Centre as part of a wider retail expansion of the town centre.

A design and access statement submitted as part of the proposed new development, says the new units will be in-keeping with other town centre retail developments and will have a ‘modern’ and ‘crisp’ design.

It is also proposed that the development will have a total of 152 parking spaces to include nine spaces for mobility vehicle uses and nine parent and child bays.

The plans will be considered by Mansfield District Council’s planning department at a later stage.

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