Local construction company awarded contract

Owners of over £100 million of investment property in East Anglia, we are proud to have awarded Ipswich based Barnes Construction the contract to expand and revitalise our Rosehill Retail Centre on Felixstowe Road, Ipswich.

The £4 million development will see over 40,000 sqft of retail space created, providing units for a further three retail outlets alongside the existing East of England Co-op Daily, plus parking for over 160 cars. 

Our Joint Chief Executive Nick Denny said: "We're very pleased to be working with Barnes Construction on what is a significant investment in the Ipswich area. As a local business, we're very proud to be able to support other businesses from East Anglia, protecting and creating jobs for local people. 

"This is an exciting development for the East of England Co-op. Following a culmination of five years of preparation and obtaining planning consent we're now looking forward to seeing the Rosehill Retail Centre progress over the coming months."

Barnes Construction is a well-established award winning business which has its roots firmly embedded in the local community. Its portfolio of work covers a wide range of construction and refurbishment projects for a variety of clients, both regionally and throughout the UK. Barnes has recently completed a number of developments in Ipswich including the Two Rivers Medical Centre on Woodbridge Road and Sailmakers Shopping Centre on Tavern Street. 

Nick Fayers, Managing Director of Barnes Construction said: "We are delighted to have been appointed by East of England Co-op to carry out the construction work to expand the retail offering in this area of Ipswich. I have no doubt that when completed the development will be of a huge benefit to local residents and the community of East Ipswich."

The East of England Co-op is also pleased to announce today, that Poundstretcher is to become its second tenant at the Rosehill Retail Centre. Poundstretcher will be situated in the unit currently containing Aldi, with Aldi moving to a new purpose built store next door to the East of England Co-op Daily. 

Nick Denny added: "We have a great relationship with Poundstretcher, with them already trading successfully alongside our stores in Combs Ford, Stowmarket and Stanway Retail Park in Essex. We're also in advanced talks with potential tenants for the two remaining units."

Demolition works of properties along Felixstowe Road are currently in progress. Work on the construction of the three new retail units will begin later this year, with the aim of having all five retail units open by Easter 2018.