It’s actually quite amazing just how quickly Tesco has sprung up. It’s been under six months from site entrance to opening day.Watkin Jones builders entered the site on behalf of Cathco Property Group developers, on 16 March 2006, only just after the KwikSave Dinbych/Denbigh shock closure announcement. Site preparations began, including the delivery of storage and site offices, earthworks, marking out, levelling and, in early April, the start of the rear retaining walls.
Preparations lasted till between 3 & 5 May 2006, when the steel arrived. It was then only a matter of days before the skeletal structure took shape and by the middle of the month, the building footprint, height and width was recognisable. At this early stage, the controversial large Tesco sign had appeared above the roofline.
Mid June saw the start of the stone cladding, on the town side of the now largely complete structure, together with brickwork extensions from it to Lon Parcwr.
Internal kerbing started in early July and by 11 July, the car park had been surfaced and partly marked out, followed swiftly by Tesco signage within, the installation of the cash machine and trolley shelters.
Watkin Jones handed over the site to Tesco at 12 noon on 21 July 2006, at which point there was already a queue of heavy vehicles on Lon Parcwr, forming the first deliveries. From this date and early in the following week, the site was swiftly cleared of its remaining builders’ equipment, as more heavies arrived. Signs went up the week before the opening, alerting locals to the first day of trading.
Even on Saturday 29 July, part of the paving outside the store will be completed and surfaced, by local contractor Howatson's (who also surfaced Co-op car park the weekend before).
The site is due to open at 0900 on 31 July 2006. That’s under six month’s since construction started and 11 months since Denbighshire council gave planning permission.
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Tesco