Cumbernauld Town Centre
Encyclopedia
Cumbernauld town centre is the main shopping centre for the New town
of Cumbernauld
, Scotland
. It is widely accepted as the UK
's first shopping mall
and was the world's first multi-level covered town centre http://www.open2.net/modernity/3_10.htm. The centre has now been expanded by the newly completed addition of the Antonine Centre
. The new centre links to the existing one via walkways and lifts.
n Engineering by architects; however, during construction, Logan Construction went bankrupt and left sparse detailed structural engineering plans. The building was widely anticipated and was visited by students to look into the design.
The penthouse apartment
s were found to have significant structural flaws in the main pillars and tenants were forced to move out. The penthouses were then converted into additional office space. By 1971 the town centre had the largest supermarket
in Scotland and work on phase 2 begun. The Corporation sought the building of a department store
and this was completed in 1975 as phase 3. It was built for Woolworths
with two levels of underground parking and was later sold to Asda
. In the mid '70's the Golden Eagle Hotel was forced to close and later demolished. Phase 4 was completed in 1981. The town centre was purchased by a shopping management group in 1996 when Cumbernauld Development was wound up. Phase 3 was demolished in 1996 and in 2001 the rear outdoor section of phase 1 was demolished. The new Antonine shopping centre was built on these sites.
In the 1990s and up until 2001, parts of the Town Centre were demolished. The land on which was part of phase 1 remained derelict until 2006, when construction of the new Antonine Centre
began, which is now worth £40 million and has 350000 square feet (32,516.1 m²) of retail space.
The old building was featured on the Channel 4
show Demolition
where it was voted as the worst building in Britain.
The Antonine Centre
opened on Wednesday 6 June 2007 attracting thousands of shoppers for the opening. The Centre is expected to increase spending in the town by 84% (£175 million); the town centre is expecting a rise in sales of almost 166%. It was officially opened by Princess Anne in July 2007.
to replace the old one on the dual carriageway directly underneath the Centre.
55.94683°N 3.99042°W
New town
A new town is a specific type of a planned community, or planned city, that was carefully planned from its inception and is typically constructed in a previously undeveloped area. This contrasts with settlements that evolve in a more ad hoc fashion. Land use conflicts are uncommon in new...
of Cumbernauld
Cumbernauld
Cumbernauld is a Scottish new town in North Lanarkshire. It was created in 1956 as a population overspill for Glasgow City. It is the eighth most populous settlement in Scotland and the largest in North Lanarkshire...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. It is widely accepted as the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
's first shopping mall
Shopping mall
A shopping mall, shopping centre, shopping arcade, shopping precinct or simply mall is one or more buildings forming a complex of shops representing merchandisers, with interconnecting walkways enabling visitors to easily walk from unit to unit, along with a parking area — a modern, indoor version...
and was the world's first multi-level covered town centre http://www.open2.net/modernity/3_10.htm. The centre has now been expanded by the newly completed addition of the Antonine Centre
Antonine Centre
The Antonine Centre is a Shopping Centre in the Scottish New Town of Cumbernauld. The Centre has of retail space including a Tesco Extra and a Dunnes...
. The new centre links to the existing one via walkways and lifts.
History
Construction commenced in 1955 under the plans of architect Geoffrey Copcutt. After the building was started, it was believed to be an example of UtopiaUtopia
Utopia is an ideal community or society possessing a perfect socio-politico-legal system. The word was imported from Greek by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book Utopia, describing a fictional island in the Atlantic Ocean. The term has been used to describe both intentional communities that attempt...
n Engineering by architects; however, during construction, Logan Construction went bankrupt and left sparse detailed structural engineering plans. The building was widely anticipated and was visited by students to look into the design.
The penthouse apartment
Penthouse apartment
A penthouse apartment or penthouse is an apartment that is on one of the highest floors of an apartment building. Penthouses are typically differentiated from other apartments by luxury features.-History:...
s were found to have significant structural flaws in the main pillars and tenants were forced to move out. The penthouses were then converted into additional office space. By 1971 the town centre had the largest supermarket
Supermarket
A supermarket, a form of grocery store, is a self-service store offering a wide variety of food and household merchandise, organized into departments...
in Scotland and work on phase 2 begun. The Corporation sought the building of a department store
Department store
A department store is a retail establishment which satisfies a wide range of the consumer's personal and residential durable goods product needs; and at the same time offering the consumer a choice of multiple merchandise lines, at variable price points, in all product categories...
and this was completed in 1975 as phase 3. It was built for Woolworths
Woolworths Group
Woolworths Group plc was a listed British company that owned the high-street retail chain, Woolworths, as well as other brands such as the entertainment distributor Entertainment UK and book and resource distributor Bertram Books...
with two levels of underground parking and was later sold to Asda
Asda
Asda Stores Ltd is a British supermarket chain which retails food, clothing, general merchandise, toys and financial services. It also has a mobile telephone network, , Asda Mobile...
. In the mid '70's the Golden Eagle Hotel was forced to close and later demolished. Phase 4 was completed in 1981. The town centre was purchased by a shopping management group in 1996 when Cumbernauld Development was wound up. Phase 3 was demolished in 1996 and in 2001 the rear outdoor section of phase 1 was demolished. The new Antonine shopping centre was built on these sites.
Modern times
The structure was very much a product of its time and many flaws within the design have been exposed. After only a few years, visitors and owners of businesses within the shopping centre noticed that the walkways were acting as wind tunnels and subsequently shops and shoppers stayed away. Other major faults appeared with the structure.In the 1990s and up until 2001, parts of the Town Centre were demolished. The land on which was part of phase 1 remained derelict until 2006, when construction of the new Antonine Centre
Antonine Centre
The Antonine Centre is a Shopping Centre in the Scottish New Town of Cumbernauld. The Centre has of retail space including a Tesco Extra and a Dunnes...
began, which is now worth £40 million and has 350000 square feet (32,516.1 m²) of retail space.
The old building was featured on the Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
show Demolition
Demolition (TV series)
Demolition is a 2005 television series from Channel 4, which can be seen as being the reverse of the BBC's 2003 series Restoration. The public were encouraged to vote for buildings which they want demolished and replaced, with 12 buildings making The Dirty Dozen.The show was shown on four days,...
where it was voted as the worst building in Britain.
The Antonine Centre
Antonine Centre
The Antonine Centre is a Shopping Centre in the Scottish New Town of Cumbernauld. The Centre has of retail space including a Tesco Extra and a Dunnes...
opened on Wednesday 6 June 2007 attracting thousands of shoppers for the opening. The Centre is expected to increase spending in the town by 84% (£175 million); the town centre is expecting a rise in sales of almost 166%. It was officially opened by Princess Anne in July 2007.
Future
A new phase is planned to link the new centre to the old with a walkway with several food outlets situated on it; there will also be a new bus stationBus station
A bus station is a structure where city or intercity buses stop to pick up and drop off passengers. It is larger than a bus stop, which is usually simply a place on the roadside, where buses can stop...
to replace the old one on the dual carriageway directly underneath the Centre.
External links
55.94683°N 3.99042°W