Business
Landsec and The Crown Estate open Westgate Oxford
Landsec and The Crown Estate open Westgate Oxford.
About this update from Land Securities Group Plc
[{"type":"text","content":"\n \nRNS Number : 3830U Land Securities Group PLC 24 October 2017 \n\n\n\n\n\nTitle Landsec and The Crown Estate open Westgate Oxford\n \nFrom Land Securities Group PLC (Landsec)\nDate 24 October 2017\n\n\n\n\nWestgate Oxford Alliance, a joint venture between Landsec and The Crown Estate, today opens Westgate Oxford, the 800,000 sq ft retail and leisure destination at the heart of Oxford city centre.\n \nThe £440 million development, which is 93% pre-let or in solicitors' hands, is anchored by a 140,000 sq ft John Lewis and includes stores from Uniqlo, Primark, Ted Baker, Victoria's Secret Pink, MAC and Tommy Hilfiger.\n \nWestgate Oxford is one of the most sustainable retail destinations in the country. An innovative energy loop delivers heating and cooling to shops and restaurants, using air source heat pumps in place of conventional boilers. This system avoids the use of natural gas, keeping costs down for retailers and reducing reliance on fossil fuels. \n \nThe construction of Westgate Oxford created around 1,000 jobs, and we worked closely with social enterprise, Aspire Oxford, to create employment programmes in construction and customer service, to get ex-offenders, the long-term unemployed and those who have been homeless in the past into work. The centre itself will create 3,500 full-time-equivalent retail jobs. \n \nScott Parsons, Managing Director, Retail at Landsec said, \"In Westgate Oxford, we have embraced the challenge of creating a best in class, sustainable development that meets the changing demands of modern customers while being sympathetic to the setting of an historical city.\n \n\"Delivering an outstanding experience for visitors and retailers alike, with a dynamic combination of retail, leisure and food and beverage, has been key to attracting great brands to the centre and we are looking forward to welcoming visitors from Oxford and beyond.\" \n \nHannah Milne, Director of Regional Retail at The Crown Estate, said: \"We knew that we had to deliver something special fo...