Barnsley, formerly a major mining town, is reinventing itself for the 21st Century, having commissioned a radical masterplan by architect Will Alsop. The joint venture of CZWG and Holder Mathias is part of the winning consortium to rebuild Barnsley Markets (first chartered in 1249), a central part of the masterplan, to create a memorable new centre for Barnsley town. The scheme will comprise of a market building, shopping streets, a six-screen cinema and a car park. After clearing the site of a tired 1960s shopping complex, the idea is to extend the existing shopping streets of the town with the new shops, the market building being casbah-like on three levels.