Bristol Galleries shopping centre will be demolished

Planning permission has been given to demolish the Galleries shopping centre in Bristol and replace it with homes, office and student flats.

On Wednesday developer Deeley Freed was given the go-ahead by Bristol City Council for its plans which include restaurants, shops and making the road running alongside Castle Park pedestrian only.

The Galleries opened in 1991 but has struggled, particularly since the opening of nearby Cabot Circus in 2008.

Many shops are currently empty and the developer said the centre is now “obsolete” and outdated.

Under the Deeley Freed plans the shopping centre’s car park will also be demolished.

Councillors voted unanimously to approve the plans, which include offices, 450 homes – 90 of which will be classed as affordable – and student flats which can accommodate 750 people are also part of the project.

Max Freed, director of Deeley Freed, said: “The Galleries has been struggling since well before the pandemic.

“It’s poorly designed and car parking covers 40 per cent of the site. It has long been obsolete. Our proposal would completely transform the site.

“There would still be shops and restaurants on the ground floor throughout the development, including new units facing outwards to Castle Park and Broadmead.”

Developers will reuse the basement and foundations of the existing shopping centre, and they say the new buildings will lead to a 40% reduction in carbon emissions thanks to a heat network and solar panels.

Newgate, the road running between the Galleries and the park, will also be pedestrianised, said the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

The Broadmead Medical Centre and an assessment clinic for the Bristol Eye Hospital currently inside the Galleries will moved to another site in Broadmead.

The developer will contribute £1.3 million to help the NHS with the relocation.

A hotel and music venue will also be built under the current plans.

Sandra Fry, of the Bristol Civic Society, welcomed the hundreds of new homes, but raised concerns about the height of the new buildings, the tallest of which will be 21 storeys.

Local Green Councillor Sibusiso Tshabalala also welcomed the development, saying the new homes are needed and the plans will keep the city centre “vibrant”.

Green councillor Jenny Bartle said: “We’re demolishing an awful lot of building. I worry about the precedent that it sets.

“Having said that, I think that it’s otherwise a very strong application and I do support it.”