£225m industrial estate approved
82 acre site off the A5 is given green light
WORK is set to start on a massive warehouse park in the countryside near Hinckley later this spring.
Planning permission was granted last week for the £225million development on 82 acres of land wedged between the A5 and junction 1 of the M69 at Hinckley - close to the Hinckley Island Hotel.
It will include a £150million, 39 acre super-hub for parcel delivery firm DPD which will create 750 new jobs, as well as two further warehouses and space for manufacturing and light industry which will create a further 1,650 jobs.
Birmingham property company IM Properties, which is behind the plans, said 250 jobs will be created during construction.
In a report given to councillors, Hinckley and Bosworth planning officers said the park will contribute around £20million to the area’s economy during the construction phase, rising to around £47million a year when fully developed.
However, the plans received 78 letters from people, many raising concerns about things such as traffic, the impact on the village feel of the area, noise, water, air and light pollution and the impact on wildlife.
David Smith, planning director of IM Properties, said the park would attract new companies to the area and provide space for local businesses to relocate and grow.
He said: “Naturally, we are delighted with the decision and are fully committed to working in partnership with the council, residents and businesses to ensure the scheme delivers long-lasting economic benefits for Hinckley and the surrounding area.
“Our vision is to deliver a high-quality, sustainable business park which is not only a great place to work, but also generates significant amounts of employment opportunities for business and the community.”
DPD’s investment in the site follows a period of growth, driven by the boom in online shopping in the UK and DPD’s own investment in technology.
When operational its 500 yard long building will handle 71,000 parcels an hour, increasing DPD’s total overnight parcel sorting capacity by 60 per cent.
The new hub will be DPD’s fifth in the UK and will be located just two miles from the firm’s Hub 4 and International Gateway, also on the A5, in Sketchley, which both opened in 2015.
Building work on the new hub is likely to start in October and it should be operational by October 2020.
Borough council leader Mike Hall (Conservative) said: “At the planning meeting I called for the refusal of the application, on the basis that the Zone 2 and Zone 3 buildings were far too high, and that their impact on the visual amenity outweighed the benefits of the development.
“Cllr Wright had also submitted a written statement with other reasons for rejection, which was read out to committee members.
“Planning officers and several members of the planning committee thought that the jobs on offer were more beneficial than the loss of amenity, and members in the end voted by a majority to pass the application, although with several members also abstaining.
“There are many conditions that will need to be complied with to ensure that the site delivers all of the environmental, traffic and employment outcomes that are part of the application. I also hope that the developers will take on board the comments raised at the planning committee and attempt to secure occupiers of Zone 2 and Zone 3 who will not require the high roof heights.
“As this is a major develop- ment in the borough there will be regular progress updates for members and residents, so that local people will know what is happening at every stage of the development.”
DPD chief executive Dwain McDonald said: “I am delighted to announce this very significant investment in new jobs and infrastructure.
“We are continuing to experience strong growth in demand for our services, which is why we are announcing another massive hub project less than three years after we opened hub 4.
“In that time, we have seen seismic changes in retail behaviour in the UK, with major events like Black Friday creating bigger and longer periods of high demand at different times during the year, and then Christmas itself becoming even more of an online retail focused event.
“We have invested hugely in our infrastructure nationwide over the last six years, moving our older depots to brand new, larger and purpose-built facilities or upgrading them to stateof-the-art 60,000 sq ft distribution centres.
“And by 2020 we will have built three of the largest overnight sorting hubs in Europe.
“That level of unprecedented investment is what ensures we stay ahead of the chasing pack and gives us the capacity to support our retail customers for many years to come.
“We’ve developed really strong links with the area and it is fantastic to be able to invest again in Hinckley.
“A large part of that decision is based on the excellent workforce here and knowing that we can recruit a good quality team locally was key for us.
“We already know that the location works brilliantly for us and, having the two hubs and our International Gateway in such proximity will give us a huge amount of flexibility.”
Bill Cullen, chief executive of Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council said the development would bring “significant job opportunities as well as apprenticeship opportunities”.
He said: “It will generate significant economic benefit to the area, improve public transport provision and underpin the council’s aspirations for enhancing the prosperity of the borough for the benefit of our local communities.
“I look forward to further developing our relationship with DPD and with other key occupiers on the site to ensure our communities experience maximum benefit from the scheme.”
IMP is obliged to deliver a package of sustainable transport measures, including extending bus services to the site and extending a footway along the A5 frontage east of the M69 and into the heart of the site.
There will also be a new 500 yard footway and cycle path from the west of the M69 to tie in with the existing cycleway/footway to the Rugby Road, which will provide a more direct connection to the site from Burbage and hopefully improve safety for pedestrians.
A spokesman for IM Properties said building work will be delivered with “careful consideration” for local people and site neighbours to reduce the impact of noise and dust.