Paisley Centre Redevelopment - Update 20 01 26
Renfrewshire Council · 20 January 2026
Back to Economy and Regeneration Policy Board — 20 January 2026 and its agenda
Text extracted from the council's PDF. Layout and reading order may differ from the original.
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PUBLIC ___________________________________________________________________ To: Economy and Regeneration Policy Board On: 20 January 2026 ___________________________________________________________________ Report by: Chief Executive ___________________________________________________________________ Heading: Paisley Centre Redevelopment - Update ___________________________________________________________________ 1. Summary 1.1 The purpose of this report is to provide an update on the proposed redevelopment of the Paisley Shopping Centre since the November 2025 Board. 1.2 This report outlines the next steps proposed by officers (with external consultancy support) and confirms that further updates will be brought back to Board at the earliest opportunity. ___________________________________________________________________ 2. Recommendations 2.1 It is recommended that the Board: i. Notes the content of this report. ___________________________________________________________________ 3. Background 3.1 In November 2025 a Board report outlined the challenges from a viability perspective from the currently proposed redevelopment of the Paisley Centre. 3.2 The proposals for a mixed-use redevelopment, including residential, hotel, health centre, offices, retail and leisure have been presented by the shopping centre owner as seeking Renfrewshire Council’s agreement to enter a long term “income strip” lease of the new development at a pre-determined annual rental level. The Council would retain the income derived from the sub-leases to the occupiers / operators of the development and would subsequently take full ownership of the development outright once the lease was concluded. ________________________________________________________________
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PUBLIC 4. Proposed next steps 4.1. At November 2025 officers stated that they would be happy to maintain a dialogue with the Paisley Centre owners and at the same time engage with national government officials in terms of alternative options and funding sources to assist the deliverability of the proposals. 4.2 In December 2025 officers have agreed with Scottish Futures Trust (SFT) to jointly fund a dedicated and independent consultancy report to examine the issues of viability around the future use of the Paisley Centre site. 4.3 SFT (and Scottish Government) are of the view that Paisley can offer potential for a “learning pilot” for other Scottish towns in overcoming the present challenges of the oversupply of purpose built retail floorspace. 4.4 Officers are finalising the commission of MATH Real Estate Partners to advise on a defined scope to include: • A detailed review of the financial viability of the current proposals for the site; • Quantifying the financial viability gap and advise on potential funding routes to bridge this gap; • An independent assessment of the potential scale, impact and volatility of key commercial risks that would be borne by the Council over the life of any lease; • The confidence levels in the forecast income streams from the various elements, including net income generation under different scenarios; • A summary of the key commercial factors that may be constraining the currently proposed model; • The estimated commercial value of each element of the development was it to be sold on the open market on practical completion; • Advise on alternative mixes of development which would reduce risks to viability and improve the prospects of delivering land use change on this key site; 4.5 The consultancy report will be completed over the next two months and a further report will be brought back to the appropriate Council Board to update on the outcomes of that analysis at the earliest opportunity. ___________________________________________________________________ Implications of the Report 1. Financial – None at this stage. The Council commitment of up to an estimated £0.1 million funding from existing regeneration resources to support the commissioning of relevant expertise and advice for the Council remains in place. The consultancy report referred to in this Board report will be partially funded from that budget.
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PUBLIC 2. HR & Organisational Development – None. 3. Community/Council Planning – Jobs and the Economy - the scheme has the potential to secure additional income for Renfrewshire based businesses, which in turn could support more investment and jobs within the local economy. 4. Legal – None at present. Any changes to this would be the subject of subsequent reports to Board. 5. Property/Assets – None at present. Any changes to this would be the subject of subsequent reports to Board. 6. Information Technology - None. 7. Equality & Human Rights - The Recommendations contained within this report have been assessed in relation to their impact on equalities and human rights. No negative impacts on equality groups or potential for infringement of individuals’ human rights have been identified arising from the recommendations contained in the report. 8. Health & Safety – None. 9. Procurement – None. 10. Risk – There are a number of potentially unacceptable commercial risks which the Council would face and these will be picked up in the consultancy report referred to in the report. 11. Privacy Impact – None. 12. COSLA Policy Position – Not applicable. 13. Climate Risk – Not applicable. 14. Children’s Rights – Not applicable _________________________________________________________ List of Background Papers • Paisley Centre redevelopment – update; Economy and Regeneration Policy Board; 4 November 2025 • Paisley Centre redevelopment – update; Economy and Regeneration Policy Board; 7 November 2023 Author: Alasdair Morrison; Head of Economy and Development; Email: alasdair.morrison@renfrewshire.gov.uk