Progress is being made on the demolition of the much loved Bentalls building in Bracknell town centre.
Bentalls was meant to be levelled in May to make way for the massive Deck project, which involves building a dining and shopping destination bridging Princess Square and The Lexicon.
Photos show that large portions of the building have been reduced to rubble.
READ MORE: Everything we know so far about 'The Deck' regeneration project
Rob Francis, a resident of Bracknell who is monitoring the situation, had criticised authorities in charge of the demolition for the delay.
The photos above were taken by him on Thursday, July 8. Similar pictures shared on the We Love Bracknell Facebook page were posted the following day.
Just a few days earlier, on Monday, July 5, the majority of the building was still standing.
Bentalls was meant to be demolished at the end of May so that it could be replaced with The Deck, a multi-million pound town centre development.
Work was meant to begin on building The Deck last month, but the delay to the demolition has put construction on hold.
The Deck will form part of The Lexicon, which is a key stakeholder in the project. Rob Morris, general manager of The Lexicon, blamed ‘technical issues’ relating to the structure of the building for the delay to the demolition.
Mr Morris added that the demolition would be completed ‘by the end of the summer’ but failed to provide a specific date or a more precise time when the Local Democracy Reporting Service asked for one.
The demolition of Bentalls was approved in February. Bentalls served as a department store in the town since until it was closed in September 2017.
Many people have shared their memories of shopping or working at the department store on We Love Bracknell.
READ MORE: Sushi takeaway coming to The Lexicon in Bracknell later this year
It is being replaced by The Deck project, which is being conducted by the Bracknell Regeneration Partnership, a joint venture between firms Legal and General and Schroder UK Real Estate Fund.
The Botanist bar & kitchen and Hollywood Bowl have already signed up to move into The Deck once it’s completed.
Hollywood Bowl currently has a home in The Point. However, The Point and The Peel Centre could be levelled in the future to make way for 900 homes.
The possible demolition of The Point for redevelopment formed part of the Emerging Bracknell Forest Local Plan, which was submitted in May this year.
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