THE landlords of the Forest Shopping Centre have broken their silence and said plans to modernise the facility were “going well”.

In July last year, East Hampshire District Council granted planning permission to a long-running project set to rejuvenate the centre.

The idea was to build two residential apartment blocks in Heathcote and Pinehill roads - 12 and six flats respectively - and then to use money generated to pay for improvements.

These include an array of works to make the facility more modern, spacious and ultimately bring in additional trade - the theme was said to be more “high street” less “1980s shopping centre”.

And yet some local councillors, tenants and members of the public have wondered why things appear to have stagnated.

Rev Deborah Scott-Bromley has a vested interest in the plans, which include a shop-front venue for the Bordon Foodbank - run from the centre by St Mark’s Church.

She said people “really don’t know what’s happening”, adding that: “This silence is a bit concerning.”

But Rob Savill, of Tyburn Lane, an independent real-estate business which operates sister company Orchard Grove Asset Management, told the Bordon Herald that the delay had been caused by “some planning issues”.

Many tenants and stakeholders in the project have been liaising with former Orchard Grove director Graham McPhail, who now “no longer works” for the company.

But Mr Savill said all was well, and highlighted the reconfiguration of one unit which recently opened as Poundstretcher and Pet Hut.

However, he said, despite the hiccups, the ultimate plan “is unchanged” - it’s just that sometimes “these things take a lot longer” than expected.

Part of the hold up might be the reliance on a third-party for funding.

The plan has always been for the residential part of the project - which is integral to the whole scheme - to be sold to a developer.

It was marketed as a “development opportunity with planning permission to create 18 new-build apartments and convert part of the upper floors of this popular shopping centre to create a further 11 apartments” - all for £650,000.

When asked if they had secured a buyer, Mr Savill said that, while it is “not contractually sold yet”, they are expecting progress in the coming weeks.

However, he was reluctant to commit to a timescale for when the project might take off.

Above all else, he was keen to stress that, despite staff changes and delays, nothing had changed and their previous commitment to the scheme was just as serious as it’s always been.

The centre is still changing - as well as Poundstretcher, a planning application for a 24-7 gym has been filed with the district council.

Agent Silver & Co Design said the location was perfect and praised the current ownership for its “involvement and investment”.

However, concerns have already been raised about the possible loss of parking spaces. In order to secure planning permission for the flats, Orchard Grove went through a number of drafts, altering the height of the buildings - said by some critics to be too tall.

So, for those objecting to that development, these delays might be seen as a blessing in disguise.

Then there is the cynical accusation, echoed on social media, that the whole thing is a “ruse”, and the real motivation is to deliberately run down the shopping centre, ultimately to build further flats on day.

But Orchard Grove has refuted that and maintains every effort is being made to rejuvenate the facility and make it a success.

Another possible spanner in the works is the new town-centre development being provided on the other side of Bordon as part of its overall regeneration.

Time will tell what impact those new shops and facilities have on the centre’s footfall and trade.

The improvements inside the centre will see the creation of new retail units as well as the reconfiguration of others.

There will also be general work and renovations to make the centre “feel more open and welcoming”.

Alterations include: the removal of the eastern and western entrance doors and canopies; removal of the brick planters; repainting the existing canopy from black to white; providing new signage; removing the polycarbonate atrium roof and then installing new lighting, planters, a “green wall” of plants and plenty more.

There are plans to install further CCTV and bring the centre, which dates back to 1983, into the 21st Century.

Orchard Grove’s website says the “full regeneration project” will take place in 2017. Which, like the planning application itself, might need a redraft.