Ambitious proposals to create “The Greenest Business Park in the West Midlands”.
Latest Update
Updated versions of the submitted Design & Access Statement and Design Guide have been submitted to North Warwickshire Borough Council and are available to download here.
Design & Access Statement
As a result of the overarching aspiration to create “The Greenest Business Park in the West Midlands”, the Design & Access Statement demonstrates the architectural vision, inspiration and overarching design principles for the scheme that would achieve this bold aspiration.
The Design & Access Statement includes illustrative masterplans (not for approval) which are included to demonstrate that the maximum 100,000sqm of floorspace, overnight lorry parking facility and ancillary development sought can be adequately accommodated within the maximum development parameters.
This approach would ensure control over the design of future development(s), should planning permission be achieved.
Design Guide
The Design Guide provides an overarching framework for future applications to follow to ensure high quality, highly sustainable and appropriately designed development comes forward to create an exemplar business park for North Warwickshire, targeted at attracting national and international businesses to the area for headquarters and ‘campus’ style facilities.
The seven High Quality Design Principles (HQDPs) and associated Design Parameters, set out in the Design Guide, would ensure that future developments follow a prescribed design template. Application of these would ensure the extensive scheme benefits are realised and guarantee compliance with relevant planning policies and guidance, including the Dordon Design Guidance and Code.
Driven by the Design Guide, in all aspects relevant to sustainability and design (including energy efficiency, renewable energy generation and ecological enhancements), future development proposals would either meet or exceed the standards currently required by legislation, policy and guidance.
The Design Guide, which can be secured by planning condition, would deliver the architectural vision for the scheme and extensive scheme benefits, acting as a development framework for creating beautiful, healthy, greener, enduring, distinctive and successful places with a consistent and high-quality standard of design.
Update
Following closure of the public consultation in September 2021, we have carefully reviewed and considered the feedback received and can announce that the planning application has now been submitted to North Warwickshire Borough Council.
This website and details of the proposals will remain available to view online during the course of the planning application.
Background
Hodgetts Estates is a commercial property developer and investor, with a track record of delivering market leading business park developments in North Warwickshire. Its flagship Core 42 Business Park at Dordon is home to established local employers including A.P. Moller – Maersk, Greencore Group Plc, Bond International Ltd, Marshall Group Plc (including its new Training Centre of Excellence for engineers), Grafton Group Plc, and Alpi UK Ltd, and has delivered significant employment benefits to the area including over 1,000 fulltime jobs, regeneration of former industrial land, enhanced pedestrian and cycle links providing access to Penmire/Dordon Lakes and significant habitat creation, as well as substantial contributions towards staff training and sustainable transport measures locally.
Recent research published by industry experts identifies record levels of ‘take up’ of logistics and industrial buildings in the West Midlands over recent years (exacerbated by COVID-19) which has eroded the supply of available land/buildings across the region to an all-time low. Research undertaken on behalf of Hodgetts Estates indicates that the area with the most acute shortage of logistics and industrial land/buildings is along the M42/A5 corridors.
A recently published independent research report has identified the proposed site as the best scoring location to accommodate a new employment and business park out of 50 sites assessed across the West Midlands.
In response to this identified need and supporting evidence base, Hodgetts Estates is now bringing forward proposals to deliver a highly sustainable business park that would seek to combine “Best in Class” logistics and industrial buildings and smaller SME buildings with significant amenities and social value benefits to local residents and communities.
Importantly, the proposals include new sustainable commuting and leisure footways/cycleways through the countryside and over 15.5 hectares (over 38 acres) of total landscaping within the Strategic Gap.