Southampton City Centre
| Southampton City Centre | |
|---|---|
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The historical Bargate in the city centre. |
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 Southampton City Centre
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| Southampton City Centre shown within Southampton | |
| Unitary authority | |
| Ceremonial county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | SOUTHAMPTON |
| Postcode district | SO17 |
| Dialling code | 023 |
| Police | Hampshire |
| Fire | Hampshire |
| Ambulance | South Central |
| EU Parliament | South East England |
| UK Parliament | |
Southampton City Centre is the commercial and organisational centre of the City of Southampton, and the transport hub of the city. Because Southampton is on the South Coast of England, the city centre is not at the geometric centre of the city, but at the southern extremity.
The traditional heart of the city is the High Street, which runs from the Town Quay to the Bargate, which was once the northern gateway to the walled city. As the city grew, this primary commercial area spread to the north of the Bargate, into Above Bar Street. Subsequent reclamation of land from Southampton Water to the west of the High Street meant further expansion in that direction, forming an area now known as West Quay and dominated by the modern Westquay shopping centre. When it opened, Westquay was the largest city-centre shopping centre in Europe, with around 100 shops.
There are several museums in the city centre, especially around the "Old Town" area. The museums include the Tudor House Museum, Medieval Merchant's House and the Maritime Museum.
The main shopping district of the city is centred on Above Bar Street (part of which is pedestrianised), London Road, High Street and East Street.
There are several indoor shopping centres in the area, namely Westquay, The Marlands Shopping Centre, Bargate and EaSTreet. As an attempt to ensure the whole city centre is not dominated by chain stores, the city council have designated East Street a "speciality shopping" district. West Quay retail park, not to be confused with the similarly named shopping centre, is also located in the city centre. The Marlands Shopping Centre was opened on 5 September 1991. In 2005–2006 the centre was revamped by adding an improved entrance at Above Bar Street and a new information desk. The shopping centre formerly featured a series of fountains but these had to be put out of service due to health and safety reasons in late 2005. Matalan shut its shop on 28 May 2014.
On 12 February 2009, Swedish furniture retailer IKEA opened its 18th British store, on West Quay Road.
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Wikipedia