Hull’s wholesalers will move to their new state-of-the-art £3.5 million fruit market later than planned as the building contract has been announced.
Developers ispace has awarded Hull based contractors Houlton the contract to build Priory Market, the new location for Hull’s Wholesale Fruit Market as the sold their out-dated waterfront site is regenerated at a cost of almost £100m.
The new £3.5m fruit market, which developers hope will be completed in Autumn 2009, will house 12 established businesses who will relocate from their current premises on and around Humber Street to make way for much needed regeneration in the Marina area.
Many of the business have had the fruit trade in their families for generations and have outgrown their existing premises. Some traders have been deterred from expanding or making improvements to their buildings, many of which are in a poor state of repair, because of longstanding plans to redevelop the whole area.
Due to the extensive wholesale element of the market, the new premises are purpose built, state-of-the-art, warehouse-type units, with each Trader having had first hand involvement in designing their own buildings and specifications.
Simon Dixon of ispace, who have been working with the Traders on their relocation for four years, said: “We should not forget however that this Market holds many special memories and is virtually unique in the UK, being only one of two working street markets in the country. That said, the new premises hold the key to the survival and future growth of the Fruit Market.”
Mike Nellist of Nellist & Co, whose family has been on Humber Street’s market for several generations, said: “It has been a long process, but one we are now looking forward to completing, allowing us to concentrate on building up the new fruit market. The move is bittersweet as our family has worked at the original market for generations, but we do look forward to the new premises, which will be much more efficient, comfortable and hopefully enable us to expand our businesses.”
IIspace, who have facilitated the move and development of the new fruit market, appointed Houltons after a competitive tender process and hope work will start on site at the end of February. Priory Market is expected to be complete and fully operational by Autumn 2009.
The move, which ends years of uncertainty, will see the transfer of the traders’ existing buildings into the land assembly project being undertaken by Hull Forward, the Economic Development Company (EDC) for Hull, in readiness for the redevelopment of the Fruit Market Strategic Redevelopment Area.
The Humber Street Fruit Market regeneration has suffered a set-back as developer Igloo said their involvement in one of the areas of land was no longer commercially viable and may mean a scaling down of the project.
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