AFTER four years of closure, the Duchy Square Centre in Princetown has been given a new lease of life.

The building has been given a comprehensive facelift and now houses 15 businesses.

Councillors were last week given a tour of the rejuvenated centre to see the companies now based there.

Nearly all the units in the building are now occupied. All the businesses are either manufacturing on site, in a service industry or involved in web sales. There are no retail units so the building is not open to the public.

Firms include a manufacturer of period-inspired clothing, aquatic specialists, bridal wear providers and a sports massage, beauty therapy and complementary therapy business.

The centre has been closed since 2012 but Devon County Council has been carrying out improvement work on the site in recent months ahead of it becoming fully occupied.

Cllr Andrew Leadbetter, Devon County Council cabinet member for economy and growth, said: ‘There has been a lot of interest in the units at Duchy Square and they’re now nearly all let, which is extremely positive and speaks volumes for Devon’s growing economy.

‘We’ve seen a wide range of businesses move in which is excellent news for the local area.’

Cllr Philip Sanders, county councillor for Yelverton Rural and West Devon Borough Council’s member for Buckland Mona-chorum, said: ‘Princetown has been through a low patch in the last few months and a lot of hard work has been put in by the parish, borough and county councils working with the Duchy of Cornwall and other agencies to turn things around and it is good to see the reward for all this effort.

‘The premises are ideal for smaller businesses seeking a realistic ingoing rental, whether moving from elsewhere or just starting up and it provides high quality accommodation in a strategically important location.’