Chunk of Central Milton Keynes shopping centre to become street food destination after major revamp

The massive dome that links the two shopping centres at CMK is to become a food, drink and entertainment destination.

The Boulevard in Midsummer Place is being transformed from a draughty atrium into a cosy village green-type space, surrounded by homespun wooden food cabins with grass roofs.

The cabins will house the existing eateries plus some brand new names, including eight “unique street food-style businesses,” said the centre general manager Shelly Peppard this week.

"Collectively, they will offer wide variety and vibrancy of cuisine for visitors,” she said.

The revamp should be complete by early Spring.

Planning permission was granted last September to regenerate the Boulevard underneath the vast 18m high dome that links it the the centre:mk.

When Midsummer Place shopping centre was built in the year 2000, it was a planning requirement that it should not physically attach to the original building. Thus there is a one metre gap between them. Critics have described this gap over the years as one of the city’s worst wind tunnels, sometimes leading to a chilly atmosphere in the atrium-covered Boulevard.

But the new upgrade will make it a place where people want to linger, with a central green area offering addition seating or an event space for performances, live music, dance, theatre, children’s craft activities, community arts and more.

Works to upgrade Midsummer Place’s Boulevard is well underway and on track to be completed in early Spring.

Shelley said: “Work is progressing well and the new Boulevard is starting to take shape. eight unique street-food-style businesses to the area.

These will be occupied by several of Midsummer Place’s existing food operators, plus a number of new businesses joining the centre... LEON will have a new neighbour soon, which we will announce in due course.”

She added: “We will be able to fully reveal our new Boulevard just in time for the better weather and then we will shift our focus on to the next stages of our exciting changes to Midsummer Place.”

LEON and Starbucks remain open while the works are carried out with minimum disruption to visitors.

You can follow the progress of the Midsummer Place work on Facebook or Instagram.