$60M PLAN COULD BRING 1,600 JOBS
Regeneration scheme earmarked for site of aborted ‘monster incinerator’
Plans have been unveiled for a new £60million manufacturing hub that could create up to 1,600 new jobs in Sunderland.
Legal& General has agreed a deal with Sunderland City Council to invest in a regeneration scheme that will transformthe25-hectareHillthorn Park site in Washington.
It is the city council’s second major regeneration partnership with Legal & General, following the firm’s £100m commitment to invest in Riverside Sunderland.
The two-phased development plan – which is subject to planning consent – will see Legal& General develop a total of about 620,000 sq ft of industrialspace over nine new commercial buildings which will then be marketed to a range of occupiers.
City council leader Cllr Graeme Miller said: “This is a tremendous step forward in our strategy to supercharge the city economy and a massive vote of confidence from Legal & General that will rapidly accelerate our plans for Hillthorn Park.
“We have worked with partners to ensure this site is developed in away that creates the greatest economic advantage for the city, and this is a deal that will deliver new job opportunities for local people and attract more businesses to Sunderland.”
Developer Rolton Kilbride Limited announced yesterday that it had withdrawn controversial plans for a proposed gasification plant – dubbed a “monster incinerator” by pro testers
– on the site.
The firm submitted plans for the plant three years ago and thousands of people signed petitions opposing the scheme.
The planning application was rejected last year after Rolton Kilbride appealed and an inquiry was scheduled for the Stadium of Light in January, but adjourned with the newsthefirmwasintalkswith Sunderland City Council.
Legal and General’s Paul Edwardssaid:“Webelievethat these latest plans will transform the Hillthorn Park area intermsofcreatingjobswhich will be essential for the local economy in the post-COVID-19 recovery phase.”
The new plan will accelerate the transformation of the Washingtonsite,partofwhich has already been granted Enterprise Zone status after being identified by the Government and the North East Local Enterprise Partnership in 2012 as a key location for new economic development.
Designed to support the needs of industrial, storage and distribution businesses, Hillthorn Park is close to Nissan’s Sunderland plant and just a short distance from the InternationalAdvancedManufacturing Park (IAMP) being developedbySunderlandand South Tyneside Councils.
Property developer HBD won planning permission for the second phase of development at the IAMP site in June.
Business leaders welcomed today’s announcement.
Ellen Thinnesen, chair of Sunderland Business Partnership,
said: “This is another fantastic development for Sunderland; another huge boostfortheeconomyandimportantly, a deal that will create jobs and opportunities for hundreds of people and businesses from the city.
And North East England Chamber of Commerce chief executive James Ramsbotham added: "This is the latest in a long line of positive announcements that is very much welcome in the context of a challenging time for the UK economy.”