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Encouraging lively ground floor uses that contribute to the vitality of the town centre is a priority, and we asked what ground floor uses you would like to see.

To date, from the options provided, ‘Leisure uses’ and ‘Food and beverage’ have received the most votes (7 each) with ‘Gallery or showrooms’ and ‘Community use’ coming second (5 votes each). ‘Clinic/health care’, ‘Office/coworking’ and ‘Retail’ are currently joint third (4 votes each) and ‘Professional services’ is last (2 votes). (There is still plenty of time to add your views.)

Many of the comments made suggested that the ground floor could be used by small independent businesses and/or a quality indoor market with a focus on food, and that such use could complement existing farmer’s markets, farm shops and food festivals. A number of examples were cited, including: Boxpark (in Wembley, Croydon and Shoreditch), the Corn Exchange/St Nicholas Market (Bristol), The Artisan Food Hall (Hull), and Darts Farm (Exeter). A town centre outlet for Rumwell Farm Shop was suggested.

Community uses were also suggested, with ideas for a public art gallery, an art centre with a small performance space, co-working space, spaces for hire, a drop-in centre for use by various groups and organisations on different days, and a multi-purpose sports area.

However, the final use of the space will not be determined by Crossmark.

Should Debenhams cease trading in Taunton, which we continue to hope will not be the case, Crossmark are happy to consider the possibility of a multi-use trial on a Meanwhile Use basis. This would give a potential occupier the opportunity to test the idea at minimal risk in the period between Debenhams closing and redevelopment beginning.

The project team are continuing to work on scheme designs, and we hope to be in a position to announce the publication of these soon. This will signal the start of Stage Two consultation, at which point we will be hold a public webinar. To be kept informed, and if you haven’t already, please do sign up for news updates (at the top right-hand side of this page).

Thank you to all have responded to consultation materials over the last couple of weeks. This update is not a final summary and, if you haven’t already, there is still plenty of time to have your say. However, much of the feedback received to date has centred around two key issues:

Issues relating to car parking have also been raised, although views varied as to whether parking provision should be plentiful or limited.

Comments on other sites, including press and social media, have mirrored feedback received on the consultation site and the project team have been discussing ways in which views expressed can be taken into account.

In this news update, we want to report back on the first of these issues. Why retirement apartments and not just apartments?

Crossmark, as Development Managers, are happy to consider all potential uses for the site and initial studies looked at a wide range of options. However, any option taken forward needs to be deliverable.

This means Crossmark needs to balance a number of factors including planning policy, the likelihood that appropriate occupiers can be found for the identified use, and the value of the final development on the open market. Without a financially viable solution, commercial investment to build the development would not be available and, unless other funding approaches could be found (for example, Government backing), the project would not be deliverable.

Projected population growth in Taunton shows a significant increase in the number of people of retirement age. In addition, in terms of financial viability, retirement apartments sell for more than apartments that are not age restricted and the additional value can be the difference between a project that is deliverable and one that is not. However, a more immediate consideration relates to planning policy around parking numbers.

The project and design team are currently working through the range of considerations associated with an unrestricted use apartment scheme and hope to be in a position to take this option forward in line with feedback received.

Our next news update will focus on some of the considerations associated with maintaining flexibility for small independent businesses and market style uses on the ground floor.

The difficulties Debenhams has been facing nationally have been making headline news recently. In common with many other retailers, changes in shopping patterns have created serious challenges and the current lockdown is only making things more difficult.

The Debenhams store in Taunton has been a major landmark for decades. It has once again survived the national round of closures and it is expected to open post-lockdown. However, whilst no-one wants it to close, the scale of the difficulties it is facing have inevitably raised concerns about the possibility of a large empty store at this key location. Having a contingency plan in place is seen as a priority for Taunton and the continued health of the high street.

In the current economic climate, there is little demand for retail premises of this size, and it is essential that any plans on how to recover from a closure take this into account. This means redevelopment options need to be considered and a contingency planning application is currently being prepared by Crossmark and their design team on behalf of the landlord.

Having looked at a number of options for the re-use of the site, Crossmark are proposing mixed-use development that enables a variety of commercial uses to be retained on the ground floor and provides active retirement living for over 55s on the upper floors. Importantly, it is considered that this approach would be able to secure the necessary investment to ensure delivery.

Discussions have begun with Somerset West and Taunton Council as the Local Planning Authority, and an overview of work to date will be publicly available online from 28th May at www.19to26northstreet.co.uk. Feedback is welcomed.

Further information about the design development and consultation process is also available at www.19to26northstreet.co.uk.