Time Out pulls plug on Spitalfields venture
Media and hospitality group Time Out has pulled out of plans to open a market in London’s Spitalfields, after the group spent six years pushing to secure planning permission for the site.
The proposals for a 20,000 sq ft food market at 106 Commercial Road, E1, were pulled with Time Out blaming the drawn-out approval process.
The plans, which would see a disused Grade II listed office block converted to accommodate 12 permanent kitchens, were withdrawn with the support of the building’s landlord, Truman Brewery.
Time Out operates a number of curated markets in across Europe, the United States, Canada, and the Middle East.
The proposals were recommended for approval by councillors last July, but the final decision was deferred and the issue has since not been brought in front of Tower Hamlet’s development committee since then.
A Time Out spokesperson said: “It is regrettable that, although recommended for approval by planning officers, the Tower Hamlets Development Committee chose to defer its decision on our application in 2022 after a process which has already taken several years and during which we addressed all prior concerns. With an expectation of the process being drawn out by further delays we have decided to no longer proceed with our application but focus our resources on other opportunities”.
“We remain focused on our strategy of signing management agreements to open Time Out Markets in both the UK and globally”, they added.
Time Out recently appointed Gillingham Bell as its global real estate partner as it looks to expand.