The transformation of an iconic destination has moved closer after a deal was struck with developers to deliver the new 'Wigan Pier Quarter'.

H20 Urban will oversee the multi-million pound over the next 10 years, alongside Wigan council and the Canal and River Trust.

It will include a major performance venue, a retail development, new homes, 70 car parking spaces and new canal boat facilities.

Plans will also transform the land around the historic Leeds and Liverpool Canal basin close to Wigan town centre.

The iconic Wigan Pier nightclub, which was demolished last year, will become a community garden.

Deputy council leader David Molyneux said: “There’s been a lot of talk in Westminster political circles about Wigan Pier going back to the 1930s.

“The reality here in Wigan is that we’re looking to the future, not the past. We’ve come up with an exciting new vision for a Wigan Pier Quarter and signed a deal with a proven developer to deliver this. It will bring prosperity and opportunity to the whole town.

“This development will provide the mechanism for attracting investment and development in this area and make sure it has a bright future.”

In December, the building that once housed the famous Wigan Pier nightclub was knocked down. Council bosses described the former club as ‘one of Wigan’s biggest eyesores’.

The council bought the building in 2013, but it stood empty and rotting for more than 12 months.

The club’s popularity peaked in the mid-1990s with the explosion of the house music and rave scene. It closed in 2010 after rows over noise levels.

The new development will include a 1,200 performance venue at the Today’s Community Church, shops off Pottery Road and the former Southgate bus depot, canal towpath improvements and a new carpark.

There are also plans to bring the building that formerly housed the tourist attraction ‘The Way We Were’ back into use.

Richard Thomas, development manager for H2O Urban, said: “Wigan Pier is a world famous destination and we want to create somewhere that lives up to that fame. We intend to breathe new life into this historic part of Wigan.”

Plans will developed in the coming months, with the first phase of the project planned to start later this year.