When The Store hotel will open at the former Boswells in Oxford

The former Boswells department store has now been demolished inside and the new building is starting to take shape, according to a contractor.

Shoppers were shocked when Boswells in Cornmarket shut for good in 2020 and then Debenhams also closed.

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Reef, working with contractors Gilbert-Ash, is converting the former department store into a 101-bedroom boutique hotel and work is well under way.

Eleanor Alexander, a design director leading the project for Reef, said in 2021 she hoped the hotel would be ready to open in the spring or summer of 2023.

But contractors on site have since estimated the new hotel will be open by the autumn.

One contractor working for Gilbert-Ash said:"The demolition was a nightmare but we have turned a corner and we are onto the build phase.

"It was a complicated job but we're now looking at an opening date in July or August - let's say August to be on the safe side.

"The store had been built in lots of different decades and had to be removed carefully.

"We still need to add another floor for the rooftop restaurant.

"It's going to be a fantastic four-star hotel."

Work by Gilbert-Ash includes the retention of the historic facades, part demolition, and the addition of a fifth floor which will include a rooftop bar and external space overlooking the rooftops.

Once open, The Store will give a big boost to the Broad Street end of Cornmarket, which has recently been pedestrianised.

Parking spaces were removed last year and planters and seating was introduced in a scheme costing £500,000.

The city's pedestrians' association has welcomed the scheme.

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There are still no concrete plans for the defunct Debenhams building in Magdalen Street, and the former NatWest bank branch on the corner of Cornmarket and George Street also remains empty.

Boswells closed early in 2020 and Debenhams early in 2021, leaving John Lewis at the Westgate Centre as the city's only remaining department store.

The roof terrace could be a major attraction, giving spectacular views of the dreaming spires in the city centre.

Meanwhile, in the centre of Cornmarket, the £40m Jesus College revamp of Northgate House was completed last year.

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It features new student accommodation, a health centre, a digital hub and new retail units facing Cornmarket.

It is not yet known when the new retail units will open or which chains will occupy them.

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This story was written by Andy Ffrench, he joined the team more than 20 years ago and now covers community news across Oxfordshire.

Get in touch with him by emailing: Andy.ffrench@newsquest.co.uk

Follow him on Twitter @OxMailAndyF