The Alhambra: Barnsley Council buying mini-Meadowhall shopping centre for £4.5million

The council, which was already the freehold owner of the centre, is buying the leasehold of the building for £4.5 million with the help of the South Yorskshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA), the leader of the council told the local democracy service at a media briefing earlier this week.

Cllr Steve Houghton said they have had a major success story in the town centre with Glass Works – “new businesses are coming in, footfall is going through the roof”.

He said: “The town centre is thriving again and the vast majority of the residents are absolutely thrilled.”

However, while the “success story” that is Glass Works was duly noted, people were concerned about the future of Alhambra.

Cllr Houghton said the council wanted to make sure the “centre stays open” – to serve the town centre with Glass Works.

“It’s not either or either; it’s both,” he said.

He added the centre had been up for sale for a while but added “there are still a large number of good businesses” at Alhambra.

A report says footfall is strong in the shopping centre, with an estimated 28% rise in footfall from 2021 to 2022, and a further 15% increase from 2022 to 2023.

Cll Houghton said: “What we have decided to do with the support of the South Yorkshire Combined Mayoral Authority (SYMCA) – and the money from SYMCA as they are paying for it – is to purchase the Alhambra centre.

“So we will take control of it so we can then develop the centre into the future.”

He said the cost of that is £4.5m and added the original price was £35m before it went down to £10m. The council then managed to negotiate further.

Cllr Houghton said they would need to rethink the centre’s future – one proposal could be to turn it (or part of it) into a health and wellbeing hub, following the success of the diagnostic centre in the Glass Works.

The diagnostic centre, he said, led to a 25 per cent increase in breast cancer screening in Barnsley.

At some point, he added, they may need to “physically redevelop” Alhambra Centre in some way.

“The combined authority agreed to fund that as well”, Cllr Houghton said.

When asked about a timeline, he said “this could be a three-year project”.

The staff currently working at the centre will be transferred into the council, he said.

“They are now in a much more secure position”, Cllr Houghton added.

SYMCA has been approached for a comment.