Chilling ‘ghost town’ shopping centre still rotting 25 year after swanky opening
The UK's 'ghost town[1]' shopping centre, Five Sisters Freeport Shopping Village, has been left to decay for over 20 years.
Once a bustling hub with more than 40 shops[2] and a top spot for designer clothes, it's now eerily quiet. Located between Edinburgh and Glasgow[3], just off the M8 motorway, the once-thriving shopping centre was easily accessible and open seven days a week. It boasted big brands like Versace, DKNY, Calvin Klein, Rockport and Levis, The Mirror[4] reported.
The shopping village also had a Leisureland facility packed with fun activities for kids, including soft play and go karts. There were two cafes and two restaurants on-site to cater to all customer needs. After its grand opening, the bosses at Freeport Leisure had big plans for expansion.
Click here for the latest updates on weird and abandoned properties[6].
An abandoned 'ghost town' shopping centre has been left to rot for decades
They submitted a planning application to West Lothian Council for an £18million upgrade, which could have included ski slopes, toboggan runs, snowboarding and a children's winter wonderland. However, these plans never came to fruition as the fortunes of the Freeport began to change rapidly.
The opening of the Livingston Designer Outlet in 2000 led to a mass exodus of customers and tenants from the Freeport store, leaving it deserted. The BBC even used the abandoned site for filming a zombie kids' show in 2015.
Sean Collidge, chairman of Freeport, confessed that the new outlet was their downfall, saying: "This scheme was 100 per cent let when it opened in 1996 and had four tremendous years. Then retail in Scotland became overpopulated in the central belt."
A new building to take its place may be approved
West Lothian Council has turned down proposals for housing but is eager for redevelopment. A council spokesperson said: "The re-development, or re-use, of Westwood (Freeport), near West Calder, previously operating as a factory outlet centre, is supported by the council. Leisure and tourist uses, specialised employment, starter units (Class 4), or institutional uses appropriate to a rural location will be supported."
They added that some new building or housing would be considered if it's shown to be necessary for the financial viability of an appropriate scheme.
"Some element of new or extended building outwith the development envelope on site and/or housing (very low density and a maximum of 30 houses meriting a rural location, all confined to the development envelope) will be considered, where this is shown to be necessary in terms of the financial viability of an appropriate scheme."
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References
- ^ ghost town (www.dailystar.co.uk)
- ^ shops (www.dailystar.co.uk)
- ^ Edinburgh and Glasgow (www.dailystar.co.uk)
- ^ The Mirror (www.mirror.co.uk)
- ^ 'Adult diaper spa' where adults dress as babies slammed for extortionate 'fetish prices' (www.dailystar.co.uk)
- ^ abandoned properties (www.dailystar.co.uk)
- ^ here (www.dailystar.co.uk)