Bircherley Green Redevelopment
This page features photographs of the ongoing redevelopment of Bircherley Green shopping centre in Hertford. The latest photos appear at the top of the page, working backwards as you move down the page.
The history of the site is also briefly covered at the bottom of the page.
First shop opens
Card Factory became the first shop to open in the new development on Thursday 28th March 2024.
Bus station walkway
The walkway connecting the shopping area to the bus station opened on 16th February 2024.
Central area opens
The central area of the redevelopment opened in November, giving views of the finished blocks.
Scaffolding comes down
By September much of the scaffolding was down, revealing the frontage overlooking the river.
View from Market Street
This view from Market Street shows the development at its full height in contect with neighbouring buildings. (7th May 2023).
Showhome Preparations
The fencing at the end of Green Street b has been moved back in preparation for the opening of the Show Home (7th April 2023).
Car Park Cladding
Improvements to the car park include cladding. This is similar to the cladding in Bircherkley Court opposite (4th April 2023).
Full Height
The buildings have now reached full height (19th February 2023).
View from The Folly
A view from The Folly with three storeys now complete (5th September 2022).
Second floor progress
Building of the second floor is now underway, with the western block mostly complete (31st July 2022).
Main Walkway
A view of the main walkway in April 2022, showing construction up to the first floor.
West Block
A view of the west block ground floor in early November 2021 (Photo: Andrew Porrer)
Emerging
This shot from Folly Island shows the new ground floor emerging above the hoardings (11th September 2021).
Piling and foundations
Piling and the laying of foundations is well underway in this photo from August 2021.
May 2021
A shot from late May 2021 looking north-west.
Bus Station
A view of the boarded up entrance at Hertford bus station.
Ready for construction
Ground beams are due to be installed during May (30th April 2021).
Preparation
Preparation work is taking place prior to construction (11th April 2021).
Clearance
Site clearance with construction materials being ground down and deposited in spoil heaps.Thanks to The Hertford Club for allowing access to take this shot looking east (20th February 2021).
Spoil heaps
Another shot of spoil heaps (20th February 2021).
Fencing
Steel fencing has been put up where Green Street meets the demolition site(9th February 2021)
Site levelling
Levelling of the western corner of the site(6th February 2021)
2nd February 2021
Looking north-east towards the car park. All of the buildings scheduled for demolition have now been taken down.
26th January 2021
Looking west from the old loading bay behind New Look and Birthdays. W.H.Smith can be seen in the background.
Green Street
Looking north towards the site (Photo: Steve Beeston).
6th January 2021
One of the last shops to be demolished is the former New Look store.
Car Park
The car park is the only part of the development deemed worthy of retention and will be refurbished.
Forty Years
The Bircherley Green shopping centre lasted less than forty years. The late 20th century design was unloved and utilitarian.
December 2020
By the beginning of December 2020 demolition work had started in earnest, with shops on the west side coming down. These has been occupied by businesses such as Hob Salon, Carphone Warehouse and Claire's Accessories
November 2020
Contractors started work in November. This shot of the former Superdrug store shows that most of the building beyond the frontage has gone.
Bus Station
The only part of the Bircherley Green to escape the wrecking ball will be the bus station and former car park.
Work Restarts
Following the approval of a new planning application, work restarted on the main site in Autumn 2020
Blight
By the summer of 2020 the former shopping centre was in a poor condition.
Decay
The site fell in to decay as the new owners decided the best way forward
Redevelopment Stalls
Work on redeveloping the site stopped when the owners decided the project was no longer financially viable. The site was then sold to a housebuilder.
Final businesses close
The last remaining businesses on the site were closed by Christmas 2018
Demolition starts
The south-east corner of the site was the first part of Bircherley Greent to be demolished. These buildings had been the home to Isobel Hospice, Halfords and Lloyds Bank (5th September 2018)
Preparation
After businesses had left the Railway and Bircherley Street Street frontage in 2018 the site was prepared for work to begin.
Redevelopment Approved
Proposals to redevelop Bircherley Green were granted planning permission in 2017 following three years of consultation.
Shopping Centre
In the late 1970s the site was sold to private owners who built a new shopping centre, which opened in 1981.(Photo: Rod Lewis)
Bus Station
This shot from 1944 shows the bus station. There was also extensive car parking.
Butcherley Green
Butcherley Green, or sometimes Butchery Green, was a densely populated area of slum housing in the town centre. Following World War I the tenements of The Green were demolished to make way for a new bus station and the residents rehoused in new council housing.This article was first published on 24th October 2020 and last updated on 30th December 2023.