User talk:GaryReggae/sandbox

History

The Swan Shopping Centre, Eastleigh was opened in 1989. The shopping centre revolutionised the retail offering of the railway town and contained many shops that were new to Eastleigh. Anchor stores include:

• Tesco Metro
• WH Smith
• New Look
• Next
• McDonalds
• Argos
• Boots

Most of these stores were complete new to Eastleigh. The centre also included glass lifts and rooftop parking, all very new concepts to Eastleigh. It was also famous for its extravagant Christmas grottos and huge Christmas tree in the Octogan.

The Swan Centre was built in the heart of the town's Victorian 'grid iron' road layout and blocked off Market Street and High Street - although through access was possible while the centre was open. As well as the retailers mentioned, The Swan Centre also included a French-style cafe and a new Library (replacing the recently demoished Town Hall library) in the High Street atrium.

The Swan Centre originally contained a large shop unit which was reserved for a major fashion retailer (rumoured to be Dunnes), however this never came to fruition and in the late 1990s, significant modifications were made to the 'Octogan' (the Market Street atrium), including removal of the glass lift, replacement stairs and closure/in-filling of the mall that led to the Sothern part of Market Street (the shop units in this part were never let). These modifications were partly paid for by Littlewoods, who moved into the new enlarged shop unit. Following the demise of Littlewoods' retail business, the unit is now occupied by TK Maxx.

Commercial success

The Swan Centre has been largely successful commercially. Most of the units on the ground floor are snapped up very quickly, however the retail units on the first floor have never been let. The High Street atrium used to have a creche but now only has the Library and centre management offices. The Market Street Octogan has never had any units let.

The future

In 2008, a major project to extend the Swan Centre was started. The extension, at the Eastern side of the centre saw a major new structure constructed above the Tesco car park. This extension will open in Spring 2009 and contains:

• A cinema
• A bowling alley
• Several restaurants

Official website: [1]