Out with the old! Tesco store bites the dust

Less than two weeks after the opening of Bradley Stoke’s new Tesco Extra store in the Willow Brook Centre, the town’s old Tesco store is quickly being reduced to rubble.

Local firm Bath Demolition has the contract to tear down the redundant store, a task that is expected to take six weeks according to a source on site. Once the demolition is complete, the land will be transformed into much needed additional car parking for the Willow Brook Centre.

Many people will see the demolition of a building that is just 15 years old as a sad commentary on the inadequate planning that was a mark of Bradley Stoke’s early days. Backers of the £80 million Willow Brook Centre will probably be hoping that their investment lasts a little longer.

Removal of the old store will clear the way for a new bus lane that is to enter the town centre site from Bradley Stoke Way. Buses will run along the side of the main Willow Brook Centre building before skirting the new Town Square to emerge on the access road that leads from the Three Brooks roundabout.

Related Links: Ready for the scrapheap