French Riviera trip for councillors looking to promote district

SENIOR COUNCILLORS and officers are in the South of France to promote Huddersfield.

In a bid to attract investors to pump money into key development sites across the borough – including Dewsbury Riverside and the Greater Waterfront Quarter in Huddersfield – Kirklees Council leader Shabir Pandor is at MIPIM, the world’s largest annual real estate event hosted in Cannes.

He hopes to use the international expo – called Le marché international des professionnels de l’immobilier – as a showcase for the borough, for its ambitions and for its future development. And the message is “Kirklees means business”. Among the sites being offered to potential investors are several that feature in the newly-adopted Local Plan including Chidswell in Dewsbury and Bradley Park in Huddersfield.

Others include Crown House, on Southgate in Huddersfield, the former Globe Mills in Slaithwaite as well as the St George’s Quarter, which focuses on the landmark Grade II-listed former London & North Western Railway goods warehouse dating from 1885.

In total 18 sites will be showcased in a glossy brochure entitled “Invest in Kirklees”.

Coun Pandor will be accompanied by the council’s Director for Economy and Skills, Angela Blake. Speaking before heading to the French Riviera, Coun Pandor said: “We are an ambitious council with huge plans for Kirklees as was shown in our recent budget, which will help our local economy thrive.”

He added: “MIPIM is the place to showcase our ambition by highlighting the £45m we’re investing in our town centres alongside £150m in transport improvements.

“To achieve this we’ve identified key sites with the biggest potential and are showcasing them to investors who will no doubt see the wealth of opportunities we have for a range of different developments.”