View our proposal to Sainsbury’s for a new community-focused covered market and co-working space
Moving forward, Tonbridge Civic Society is keen to prepare its own proposals for discussion with the local authority, stakeholders and the wider public. One example of this is our recent proposal to Sainsbury’s for the former Beales department store site.
The site has been vacant for three years, since Beale’s closed in January 2020. Sainsbury’s owns the lease for the unit but has made public no plans for its future.
Eat, drink, shop (and work!)
Tonbridge Civic Society recognises the importance of this large, central site to the people of Tonbridge. We would like to see it repurposed into a multi-use space for eating, drinking, shopping and relaxing, with some co-working and innovation spaces within the rear mezzanine area to help overcome the chronic shortage of affordable office space in the town.
Within the multi-use space, we could see record and book stalls, clothing, locally-produced food, coffee shop - all small, all unique. Vitality and passion go in to creating new businesses and these concessions could provide a springboard for great ideas which lack the financing to risk taking a lease on a high street premises. However, if they grow, these businesses might take a vacant unit in the town.
The car park between Sainsbury’s and the High Street could also be easily repurposed into a usable public plaza for temporary smaller markets like the farmers market and to create a new civic space at the heart of Tonbridge.
If you would like to help move plans forward, please sign our Change.org petition here.