There are fears it will never reopen Broadwalk shopping centre car park

The car park at South Bristol’s biggest indoor shopping centre has closed suddenly, after a structural report raised concerns about the ageing multi-storey car park.

The car park at the Broadwalk Shopping Centre in Knowle, which is earmarked for demolition in the long-term, closed without any notice on Wednesday, leaving shoppers and business owners uncertain of its future.

It is not clear if the car park, which has had structural issues before, will ever reopen or if its closure is temporary, and further investigation is needed to assess the long-term future of the structure. Parking on the lower levels had been stopped because of structural worries back in 2017, and now the rooftop part of the car park is closed too.

Three local councillors who cover the Hengrove and Whitchurch Park ward said people should allow extra time if driving there to have an appointment nearby.

“Broadwalk car park has closed temporarily,” the councillors said in a statement. “Parking on the roof has also now been stopped. We understand this follows a structural report raising issues.

“These are being investigated so there is a chance it could reopen. But for now please be aware that there is no parking in the car park and parking in the surrounding community is very limited.”

The boss of the Club 3000 Bingo venue at the rear of the shopping centre posted a video on its Facebook page urging customers to continue to come, which showed him driving around the Broadwalk shopping centre and the nearby streets of Knowle showing where there could be parking spaces for people coming to the bingo.

A statement from My Dentist, which is based in the shopping centre building, apologised to patients. “We’re sorry to inform you that the Broadwalk Shopping Centre parking will be closed until further notice due to health and safety reasons,” it said.

“We understand this may cause inconvenience, and we sincerely apologize. We will keep you updated and let you know as soon as the parking is back in operation. Thank you for your understanding and patience,” it added.

The owners of the shopping centre and the surrounding buildings including the bingo hall and the car park did obtain planning permission 18 months ago to demolish the entire area and build around 850 new flats there, but after a backlash and threatened legal challenge from local residents, that work did not start.

Now, the developers are in the process of scaling back and coming up with new plans after agreeing a deal with the local residents’ campaign group to end the threat of legal action.