£5.5 million box park will be a 'magnet puller', bringing 500,000 people a year into Wolverhampton

A £5.5 million new ‘box park’ in Wolverhampton will be a ‘magnet puller’ bringing half a million visitors a year into the city, say council leaders.

The council cabinet gave the go-ahead to recruit a private-sector operator to build and run the venue hosting ‘pop-up’ food-and-drink retailers for the next 25 years, although a location is still to be decided.

Councillor Bhupinder Gakhal said he expected major sporting events, such as future world cups, to bring huge crowds into the city.

“This is truly a wonderful opportunity for Wolverhampton, bringing more people into the city,” he said.

“Leeds has got something similar to this, and when you have a major sporting event you have thousands of people coming into the city. That tells me this is a city that is growing, this is a city that investors want to invest in.”

Councillor Steve Evans added: “What we see in most city centres is when you see what we call a ‘magnet puller’ or an ‘anchor’, you get branches of other businesses wishing to open up, and we mustn’t forget we are building lots of new housing and apartments within the city centre, and I dare say you will get a lot of young, professional people moving in who would utilise a box space.”

Councillor Stephen Simkins, leader of the council, said the scheme represented ‘another piece in the jigsaw’ of regenerating the city.

Yesterday (Wednesday) the cabinet approved plans for the council to seek an operator to build and operate the site. Under the arrangement, the council will provide £5.5 million for set-up costs, leasing the site to the operator on a 25-year lease, allowing the council to recoup its investment.

The council hopes to have an operator in place by November.

Councillor Simkins said: “This is another piece of the jigsaw, not only for the city centre but for the city as a whole.

“This scheme has the potential to attract at least half a million visitors every year, more visitors means more customers and more for our shops and cafes and bars and restaurants and bars and other businesses who will benefit from that.”

The council first announced plans for a ‘box park’ in the city in the summer of 2021, after securing £15.7 million from the Government’s Future High Street Fund.

But after identifying a site between Bell Street and Cleveland Street, demolishing a row of shops and buying an adjacent building to make way for the scheme, the council revealed that the site was no longer considered suitable, and was looking at alternative sites.

Box spaces, which often use shipping-style containers to house pop-up food-and-drink sellers, are becoming increasingly popular in town and city centres as a means of supporting independent businesses, driving evening economy growth and creating vibrant destinations to attract younger and family audiences.

But a report presented to the cabinet suggested that a food-hall style indoor venue would also be considered.

A spokesman for the council said several potential sites had been shortlisted, but the authority was keen to hear from prospective operators on which council-owned sites would work best for their proposition.

He said a recent market assessment by independent experts Leisure Division showed strong and growing demand for food-hall style destinations, even while traditional food and drink businesses faced tougher trading conditions nationally.

Councillor Stephen Simkins, leader of Wolverhampton Council, said: “We are seeking an experienced operator with a proven track record of running successful box-style venues and a passion for delivering high quality, inclusive, community-minded spaces.

“We’ve wanted to bring a box space to Wolverhampton for a while, so I’m delighted we’re finally pressing ahead.

“This is a chance to create something really special - somewhere that feels authentically ‘Wolves’, gives people more reasons to spend time in the city centre, and attracts visitors from across the region. 

“Alongside major investment like the £83million Smithgate development, the transformation of The Halls and huge upgrades to public spaces, safety and lighting, this new venue will help make our city centre an exciting, vibrant place day and night.”