Inside ‘ghost town’ shopping centre near Edinburgh that’s been left to rot
The Five Sisters Freeport Shopping Village, once a bustling hub with over 40 stores and a top spot for designer clothes, has been left to decay for two decades, turning it into a ‘ghost town’. This massive shopping centre, spanning 50,000 square feet, attracted more than a million visitors in its first year and had plans for expansion to include more leisure facilities like a snow centre and a golf course.
Located between Edinburgh and Glasgow, just off the M8 motorway, it was easily accessible and open seven days a week from 10am. Shoppers could find brands like Versace, DKNY, Calvin Klein, Rockport and Levis. It also boasted a Leisureland facility with soft play, go karts, an entertainment centre and fun activities for kids. Two cafes and two restaurants were on-site to cater to all customer needs.
After opening, the bosses at Freeport Leisure had grand plans for expansion and submitted a planning application to West Lothian Council for an £18million upgrade. The proposed features included ski slopes, toboggan runs, snowboarding and a children’s winter wonderland. However, these plans, along with a new golf course and putting range, never came to fruition as the fortunes of the Freeport began to decline rapidly.
The opening of the Livingston Designer Outlet in 2000 led to a significant decline in customers and tenants for the new Livingston store. The site has been unused since then, even serving as a filming location for a BBC zombie children’s show in 2015. Sean Collidge, chairman of Freeport, confessed that the opening of the nearby Livingston outlet was their downfall. He said: “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.”
West Lothian Council has turned down proposals to build homes in the area but is eager to see it redeveloped. A spokesperson stated: “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: “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.”
The 50,000 square feet shopping centre near West Calder attracted more than one million visitors (Image: No credit)
Empty units are left in the ‘ghost village’ centre (Image: No credit)
The centre was within travelling distance for most people in central Scotland (Image: No credit)
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