Howgate Centre: Update on the Falkirk shopping centre

The 185,000 sq ft centre comprises 56 units and is among the lots at the Acuitus auction which will be livestreamed online on May 18.

It currently annual gross rental income of just over £1 million from occupiers including Boots, JD Sports, River Island, New Look and Wilko.

The centre opened in 1990 with the original tenants Boots, Woolworths and Argos.

Over the last 32 years it has had several owners.

Mhairi Archibald of Acuitus said: “The Howgate Centre is a good example of the type of shopping centre which is attracting entrepreneurial investors who look to take advantage of these assets’ large city-centre footprints and opportunities to drive income.”

The Acuitus auction will take place on May 18 at 1pm and will be broadcast via livestream on the Acuitus website with bidding online, by telephone and by proxy.

Earlier this year it was revealed the former Marks and Spencer unit in Falkirk town centre had been bought by businessman Douglas Hannigan.

Although the unit is not technically part of the Howgate it does have a rear entrance which leads into the centre and provides access to the other levels and car parking.

Mr Hannigan suggested to Falkirk Council that it could be developed as a new headquarters for the local authority.

The move was welcomed by the Howgate marketing manager Margaret Foy, who said at the time: “We are delighted the M&S site has been secured for development and welcome the investment into the town centre. This store closure had a catastrophic impact on footfall in the town centre and its central location and link between the High Street and Howgate offers a unique opportunity to revitalise the High Street.

"There are hundreds of staff working in the Howgate as well as various off-site staff, local suppliers and contractors who support the businesses, and of course thousands of staff working within the wider town centre, all of whom depend on footfall and investment for growth.”.

However, the council said it had been agreed by members to focus on the current municipal buildings site as the location for the new HQ.