Wolverhampton Council set to start legal proceedings against Beatties owners as site lies dilapidated

The owners of a former city department store are set to be taken to task for failing to tidy the site of the building.

Wolverhampton Council is set to start legal proceedings against the owners of Beatties for failing to comply with a section 215 notice requiring the owners to tidy the site.

It comes as the council continues to work on a Development Delivery Strategy, funded and co-developed by the West Midlands Combined Authority, to find a viable route to unlock redevelopment and secure a deliverable scheme that brings the landmark building back into active use for the benefit of the city.

The council said it was keen for the site, which closed in 2019, to be brought back into use as part of its transformational Our Future City Centre Plan, but said in the short-term it was seeking to take the owners to task for non-compliance of the section 215 notice and letting the building become dilapidated and what it calls a blight on the city centre.

Earlier this year, the council’s Cabinet agreed in principle to consider a Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) of the site as a last resort to bring about its regeneration.

The council said the current owner of the site, Eden Beatties, had stripped out the internal fittings and removed some structures, but had failed to progress the scheme it has planning permission for, and the building was currently in poor condition.

Councillor Stephen Simkins, Wolverhampton Council Leader, said: “We have given the owners of Beatties ample opportunity to comply with the legally-binding clean up notice.

“They have missed deadline after deadline and enough is enough as the current state of the building is totally unacceptable.

“I also want to recognise the frustration felt by residents and us all regarding the lack of visible progress in developing the Beatties site.

“It is an iconic landmark in our city and we have stressed to the owners the urgency of seeing realistic and rapid plans to bring it back to life with evidence that a credible and comprehensive funding package is capable of being developed.

“We stand ready to support credible plans but are also exploring all available options, including using CPO powers as a last resort, to bring the building back to life and all the jobs, opportunities and investment that will bring with it.”

Eden Beatties have been contacted for a comment.