Broadmarsh: They think it's all over...it is now

Capital Shopping Centres now owns Nottingham.
Well, in retail terms anyway.
It agreed a deal today to buy the remaining 25% shareholding in Broadmarsh from the Royal Mail Pension Fund. With the 75% it agreed to buy from Westfield for £55m, it means it now has complete ownership of the centre.
For those interested, it paid £18.3m for the pension fund’s 25%. It’s the same quantum as the Westfield price, and probably a premium over the paper value.
The wording of CSC’s announcement, made to the Stock Exchange, is interesting.
CSC had said it wanted to pump £250m into expanding the Victoria Centre, which it already owns. The fear in Nottingham was that this would mean a more ambitious revamp of Broadmarsh – which would also tidy up a massive eyesore on the southern approach to the city – would be sidelined.
Not only that, but the artist’s impressions of what CSC has said it wants to do to the Victoria Centre are, shall we say, quite traditional (and that’s putting it politely
Anyway, this is what David Fischel, CSC’s chief exec, said in today’s announcement:
“CSC is delighted to have acquired this important asset in Nottingham. Common ownership of Victoria Centre and Broadmarsh greatly improves the prospect of transformational retail and leisure led development taking place within the city to the benefit of the local and wider Nottingham community.
“The Victoria Centre has been at the heart of Nottingham for over 40 years and this acquisition further underlines our commitment to the city, which is one of the UK's top ranking retail destinations. We look forward to working with Nottingham City Council on this exciting opportunity.”
That may just be holding back an already familiar deck of cards. Or it could be an olive branch to a City Council which privately has considerable concerns about what CSC may – or may not – do. Or, it could be an indication that, now it’s got two centres, it will revise both plans.
Legal completion of the purchase hasn’t gone through yet, so I doubt we’ll hear a categorical statement of intent until then. CSC will also be discussing its options with the likes of Harvey Nichols, Marks & Spencer, Apple and Hollister, all of whom had agreements of varying status in relation to Westfield’s Broadmarsh redevelopment.
Either way, it’s time for CSC to start talking to Nottingham.