Turnstone Estates has appointed a main contractor on its £65 million leisure development in Colchester, part of Colchester Borough Council’s Northern Gateway. HG Construction will start work on the 200,000 sq ft scheme this month with completion scheduled for the autumn of 2023.
Natalie Greig, Associate Director of Turnstone Estates, said: “We are delighted to reach this stage of the project and be starting work on site. Our fantastic line up of operators are raring to go and we are confident that HG will help us deliver a state-of-the-art leisure scheme for Colchester.”
HG Construction is a leading Tier 2 design and build contractor with over 20 years’ experience in commercial, residential, hotel and student accommodation schemes throughout London and the South East.
Conor Rice, Managing Director, HG Construction, said: “We are pleased to be partnering with Turnstone Estates to help deliver this exciting new scheme for Colchester. We are confident it will make a positive addition to the local area and we look forward to getting started soon.”
Planning approval for the 200,000 sq ft leisure scheme, located south of Junction 28 of the A12, was granted by Colchester Borough Council in December 2020. It includes a 12-screen Cineworld, seven restaurants, two drive-thru restaurants (Greggs and Wendy’s), a 90 bed Travelodge hotel, Hollywood Bowl bowling alley, Puttstars indoor golf centre and a Jump Street climbing centre, as well as high-quality landscaped piazza, parking for 750 cars and a rapid charge electric vehicle charging station.
Cllr Sue Lissimore, Portfolio Holder for Resources and Deputy Leader of Colchester Borough Council said: “We welcome the appointment of HG Construction to deliver a high quality, best value development that will take our exciting plans for the Leisure Park at Northern Gateway from vision to reality. This is another leap forward in ensuring Colchester builds its reputation as a great place to visit, live and work whilst securing high levels of commercial income that can support Council services into the long term.”
The Turnstone scheme for the Northern Gateway Leisure Park forms part of a wider development delivered by Colchester Borough Council and its Colchester Amphora companies that also includes the recently opened Northern Gateway Sports Park and the forthcoming 350 new homes, healthcare hub, and 45,100 sqm of commercial floorspace. The whole development will benefit from an integral digital network providing ultra-fast broadband to local homes and businesses.