Hammerson, the tottering retail giant, has put one of the most popular buildings in Milton Keynes’ history up for sale.

Britain’s first purpose-built multiplex cinema (c) Mark Coster
‘The Point’ won a place in people’s hearts in the 1980’s as the very first leisure destination for the fast-growing new town. Not only was it somewhere to meet, eat, dance and watch films, it was also a beacon of the future and a sign of coming home. The Point’s famous red ‘pyramid’ of light could be seen for miles around!
But times change, and after various recent attempts to redevelop the five-acre site (including a lapsed planning permission for the new ‘piano’ building), the owners have now put it up for sale. The brochure describes it as a “brownfield redevelopment opportunity” with the potential to build around 450 flats.
sketch from Savills’ sales brochure
However, while Central Milton Keynes has lots to offer, something it still lacks is a good-size venue for live music.
Fans of The Point would no doubt be delighted if the original building could be rescued as the heart-beat of an imaginative scheme, which included new homes. If only an organisation such as The Stables, champions of live music, could be tempted to open a new venue in this much-loved building! Surely, something like this would be a popular move, and would help the Council achieve its ambitious plans for a renaissance of Central Milton Keynes?
published 08/07/2021