Press Releases

February 27 2006

Tesco superstore coming to Gorton

Ask Developments, Manchester City Council’s selected developer of the 3.5 acre Gorton District Shopping Centre site, has concluded agreements with Tesco, the UK’s leading supermarket group. The Tesco Extra supermarket will be the flagship store in the new retail scheme planned for Gorton in East Manchester, just 1.5 miles from Manchester city centre. 

In addition to the Tesco Extra store, a replacement 20,000 sq ft community focused market hall and 18,000 sq ft of new retail units are to be developed, creating a 21^st century district centre for Gorton.  The new district centre will play a key role in the regeneration of the area, changing the current street scene of Hyde Road and making local shops more visible.

Manchester City Council leader Richard Leese said: "A vibrant and successful Gorton shopping centre is something we have been striving towards. It will not only substantially improve the environment and shopping facilities, but also provide further employment opportunities for people in the area."

Tom Russell, Chief Executive of New East Manchester Ltd said: “This is a major milestone in the regeneration of Gorton.  The retail offer in this part of East Manchester has been poor for a number of years, so having a prestigious retailer such as Tesco as the anchor store for the district centre is tremendous and will undoubtably attract other high street retailers, bringing jobs and visitors to the area.”

John Hughes, Senior Development Executive at Ask Developments said: “We are delighted to have completed the acquisition of Gorton District Centre and signed up Tesco – the leading food retailer in the UK. This is an exciting opportunity for Ask, Manchester City Council, New East Manchester and Tesco to work together to deliver a vibrant new district centre in Gorton, benefiting both local residents and the local economy.“

Shaun Edgeley, Corporate Affairs Manager at Tesco said: “We are delighted to be building a new store in Gorton and playing our part in the regeneration of this key area of Manchester.”

A planning application for the £18 million scheme has already been submitted to Manchester City Council. If granted, work is expected to start on site in this Autumn, with completion scheduled for December 2007.