House of Fraser, Debenhams and John Lewis, as well as the owners of two of Scotland’s largest shopping centres, Glasgow’s Buchanan Galleries and the St Enoch Centre, have lodged objections against the 130-acre development, claiming it will have a major detrimental impact on the city centre.
It puts them up against one of the UK’s most powerful real-estate figures, Isle of Man tycoon John Whittaker and his plans for the scheme -- seen as fundamental for the rebirth of the Clyde waterfront.
A planning application to be decided today will bring a shopping development, a 30-storey tower housing office space, a cinema and casino, bars and restaurants and a 200-bedroom hotel.
Two neighbouring local authorities, Renfrewshire and West Dunbartonshire, have also raised concerns, claiming the scheme, which has almost 26,000 sq metres of retail space, will jeopardise both Braehead and renewal proposals for Clydebank, while nightclub chain Lynnet Leisure has also objected.
The application, from billionaire Whittaker’s Peel Holdings company, which developed and owns Manchester’s Trafford Centre, comes just weeks after Glasgow City Council said it could curtail retail developments outside the city centre to preserve Glasgow’s position as the most popular shopping destination outside London.
Objectors to the scheme claim the proposals are contrary to the city’s blueprint on retailing policies and that the scale of development is not appropriate for this location.
They also insist that the estimated expenditure by customers when the development is completed is unrealistic in the current economic climate and that the retail impact assessment has been underestimated.
A House of Fraser spokeswoman said: “Glasgow is a vibrant city with a strong retail offering and we feel the council should focus on strengthening what exists.”
A Lynnet leisure spokesman said: “We have opposed the Glasgow Harbour project because this will be another project that will drive footfall away from the city centre.
“With a population of only half a million people there are already too many large shopping attractions to take people out of the heart of Glasgow and from their local high streets.
“Other major cities in the UK such as Manchester, Liverpool and Leeds have developed fabulous city centres to draw more customers in, instead to dividing them with various different shopping attractions.”
But according to Clydeport, a subsidiary of Peel Holdings, the proposal would have a 1% impact on the city centre and less than 1% impact on Clydebank town centre, at 2015 and that these are likely to be sustainable.
Despite the likelihood of a future moratorium on out-of-town developments, city council officers have recommended the plans are approved, although the retail component could be bargained down.
When plans were initially mooted Glasgow Harbour wanted around 45,000 sq metres of retail and 2500 residential properties, which is now 190 properties and 25,805 sq metres. If approved in principle today, as a result of the council being a stakeholder in the Glasgow Harbour plans, it will be down to the Scottish Government to give final approval.
The council report concludes: “The proposal is acceptable in land-use planning terms. It is recognised that concerns exist regarding the potential impact of the retail component and office component on existing retail and office centres, particularly the city centre, and that the proposal is a departure from the structure plan.
“This has been considered and the potential impacts are not considered to be significant. The third party representations received have been taken fully into account but in this case do not warrant refusal of the application.”
But a Renfrewshire Council spokesman said: “We don’t believe the applicant has put together a proper retail assessment that takes into account the current economic conditions. We believe the development will have a negative impact on retail areas such as Paisley town centre.”
Glasgow Harbour managing director Euan Jamieson said: “We have worked closely over a long period with city planners on this revised application, taking into account the changing economic circumstances and their effect on the city centre, and now await the council’s decision.
“We believe that our proposals, in tandem with the adjacent landmark Riverside Museum, would extend the west end down to the waterfront and create a new and vibrant destination -- reinforcing Glasgow’s position as a major UK retail visitor attraction.”
A spokesman for Glasgow City Council said: “The proposals will be considered under the normal planning procedures.”
Revival on the Clyde: not all plain sailing
After many years of dereliction caused by the decline of shipbuilding and the migration of Glasgow’s docks to the Firth of Clyde, Glasgow Harbour has arguably become the most emblematic project in the Clyde’s revival.
Mirroring the Docklands scheme in London, the old docks, and sites of old granaries, wharfs and shipyards in Scotland’s largest city have been redeveloped over the past decade into upmarket residential apartments, office complexes and leisure facilities.
The Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre (SECC) at the former Queen’s Dock was the first development and remains the touchstone for the rest of the Harbour development, with an extension still planned as a key venue for the 2014 Commonwealth Games.
Since the turn of the decade hundreds of apartments have sprung up, a new bridge connecting both banks of the river has been completed and a new transport museum is well under way.
A pre-light rail metro system -- Clyde Fastlink -- which will link the area to the city centre, with possible interchanges to the Subway, is also still on the agenda.
But the proposals for the thrust of the Harbour scheme, approval for which could be granted today, have had something of a stop-start history.
The city council originally rejected much of the proposals in 2002, claiming many of the plans had fallen short of the original masterplan and asking the developers for an “enhanced vision”.
It had been one of the proposed sites for the Glasgow super-casino bid, which was awarded to Manchester before eventually being scrapped.
In early 2007 it was also criticised by a leading US urban regeneration expert, who claimed that the residential aspects were little more than dorm areas for young transient professionals, while many property speculators who snapped up homes at the Harbour have not made the killing they hoped for.
A £250,000 property bought within Glasgow Harbour in 2006 would now be valued much less.
Now, with touching distance in sight, a row between three of the partners within the Clyde Waterfront Partnership could derail the whole project. Ultimately, the decision to approve or not lies with the Scottish Government … but for now the future for Glasgow Harbour remains unclear.
