EXCITING plans spearheaded by a successful local businessman for beating the recession with jobs for Bridgnorth people are gathering pace. The package, which is aimed at developing a site on the outskirts of the town, is set to take an important step forward later this year.
The work at Chartwell Business Park, off the Stourbridge Road, involves providing the infrastructure for ‘non retail’ buildings – which could even in the future include a hotel.
It will involve building roads, putting up street lighting and drainage on the 10-acre site. With that work in the pipeline, landowners Chartwell Developments Ltd have submitted a planning application for four 5,000 to 6,000 sq ft units.
One of the first developments would be a business enterprise centre which would help establish interested companies.
The managing director of Chartwell is Stewart Hickman, who holds the same position with Stanmore Industrial Estate owners Stanmore Properties. Mr Hickman also painted a positive picture for Stanmore this week, reporting that “two or three” new small companies had recently moved on to the estate.
The good news comes at a time when more Bridgnorth area residents are joining the dole queue.
It was revealed last week that the number of those claiming benefit rose from 505 to 558 over the past three months.
Mr Hickman explained that it was important to have the infrastructure in place at Chartwell to encourage development.
“We have been working with the Government agency Advantage West Midlands and with Shropshire County Council to provide the infrastructure so that traditional industry can be brought to the site,” he said.
“We want the commercial uses to be as wide as possible to complement the town. We are not expecting a huge rush, but we want to be prepared for the upturn and the current application to the district council is the first phase.
“We want to provide local employment and make Bridgnorth more attractive to companies and for people who now have to travel to places like Telford, Birmingham and Merry Hill.
“But we will not be going down the DIY centre route, as there is an outstanding approval for one of those in the town centre (Old Smithfield).”
Moves had been made to try and establish a Homebase outlet at the Chartwell site, but that has long since been dropped.
Last summer, district councillors heard that some of the empty buildings at Stanmore Industrial Estate might be demolished because there had been no significant interest in taking them on for industrial use.
“The business rate makes it extremely difficult, but we have looked at every way forward and the best possible use for the units,” said Mr Hickman. “The planning authority gave us more slack with permission for a leisure use with a gymnasium, creche and children’s play barn in the centre of the estate.”
Although that has not yet come to fruition Mr Hickman is happy with the arrival during the Christmas period of three more factory tenants.