EXPERTS have warned council bosses to resist new out-of-town food and drink developments which will “undermine the town centre”.

The warning comes as Colchester Council prepares to launch its Northern Gateway development, which would be home to 12 bars and restaurants.

In a new study into Colchester town centre, consultants Cushman and Wakefield says the town centre has dropped in two national league tables by about ten places and said action needs to be taken to reverse the decline.

Council bosses say the report highlights “major questions which needs answering” and say the scheme will not go ahead until they are sure the development will not significantly affect the town centre.

In a report due to go before councillors on February 7, the experts warn: “It will be important to control the growth of commercial leisure and food and drink uses outside Colchester town centre, given their increased importance for sustaining town centres and anchoring new schemes.

“There is a major role for such uses, including family-orientated catering, in order to create choice and increase dwell time in the town centre.

“New food and drink uses in non-central locations, of a type and scale which would compete with and undermine the role and status of the town centre, should be resisted by the council.

“Failure to do so will potentially ‘soak up’ operator demand and threaten the delivery of new retail-led developments, which are increasingly dependent on complementary food and drink uses, in the borough’s principal centre.”

The 72-page report also plots a decline in Colchester town centre between 2012 and 2015, which is the most recent figures available. It states: “This may reflect the lack of inward investment.

“Another contributing factor is likely to be the relative improvement of similarly-ranked centres across the UK and, importantly, centres that directly compete with Colchester town centre for retailers and shoppers.”

The consultants also issued a stark warning that Colchester is experiencing a “significant decline in the higher scoring, middle and upper middle fashion retailers” and has “shifted to lower quality retailers”.

The report also warns of the “increasing strength of retail provision at Tollgate” which the experts expect will be enhanced by the planned the leisure-based Stane Park development, set to house a Nando’s, Bella Italia, KFC, a McMullen pub and Coast to Coast coffee shop.

Fresh figures also suggest 10 per cent of town centre units are vacant, equating to 11 per cent of total floorspace.

The town does, however, have 24 or the 29 “major retailers” as set out by data provided by Experian Goad.

However, the report warns closures of the likes of Gap, Burton and Dorothy Perkins point to a “potential reluctance of key retailers to continue investing in the town centre”.

Cushman and Wakefield also allude to the planned closures of Oasis, in High Street, and Karen Millen, Sir Isaac’s Walk.

It also recognises although BHS, in Lion Walk, has closed it will be replaced by Primark next month, which the consultants say will have a positive effect.

Aside from national retailers, about 380 of Colchester town centre’s 590 occupied shop units are retail businesses.

'Report highlights major issues'

COLCHESTER Council leader Paul Smith says the report has raised “major issues” and has led to delays in the Northern Gateway project.

He also said the scheme would not proceed until both the council and its appointed developers, Turnstone, are satisfied the project would not significant effect the town centre. Mr Smith said: “This is a report which highlights major issues which has led to a delay in the planning process.

Gazette: Paul Smith at the Northern Gateway site

“Quite rightly the developers have said: ‘This points major questions which need answering and we have got to make sure we have got a proper answer.”

He added: “We are looking at the Northern Gateway scheme the same way as we did with Tollgate Village and we have to be sure we’re not just moving jobs from the town centre but that we are actually creating jobs.”

Mr Smith also rejected the notion the town is only attracting “lower quality” retailers, pointing to Fenwick’s £35million investment in its High Street store.

He added: “I would say between 2012 and 2015, Williams and Griffin -as it was - was undergoing substantial renovation and that did have a negative impact. Since then, things have changed.”