New link road will unlock 拢100m of development opportunities
A long-standing 拢100m plan to revive a former mining town in the Forest Dean has taken a step forward following approval for a key link road.
Forest of Dean council has given permission to the Homes and Communities Agency鈥檚 (HCA) planning application to build an access road to a new quarter it is developing on a derelict depot in the town of Cinderford.
The committee also granted consent for a 7,750m2 new campus for the Royal Gloucestershire College as well as outline permission for a hotel; 18,800m2 of employment and business space; 195 homes and a visitor information centre.
The masterplan for Cinderford鈥檚 regeneration was first drawn up in 2006 by planning consultants Halcrow, now part of consultant CH2M Hill.
The HCA is currently searching for a partner to build the access road, which is designed to unlock the Northern Quarter site. The government has provisionally allocated 拢3.8m through its Growth Deal agreement with the area鈥檚 local enterprise partnership to support future improvements to the Northern Quarter link road from 2016/17.
The HCA claims that the scheme, which was the subject of an unsuccessful High Court challenge earlier this year over claims that it would destroy a habitat for rare bats, will create around 1,000 new jobs to the district.
David Warburton, head of area for the HCA, told the committee that the project represented a 鈥渙nce in a generation opportunity鈥� for the Forest of Dean.
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