Bridge Water Logistics Park Proposal

Hello andWelcome Introduction

Welcome to the virtual Pre-Application Community Consultation (PACC), this website forms part of the Community Consultation in respect of our exciting new proposals at Bridgewater Logistics Park, Banbridge. The development proposals comprise of the construction of a new Storage and Distribution facility (c. 15,000sqm) along with bespoke headquarters for local building contractor Glasgiven Contracts Ltd, located on 6.6ha (16.3 acres) of zoned employment lands which currently lie vacant to the north-east of existing retail units at Bridgewater Retail Park. Consultation during COVID-19 In light of ongoing lockdown and social distancing measures, temporary Pre-Application Community Consultation Regulations were introduced by the Department for Infrastructure. The statutory requirement of normal public consultation event was removed in the interest of public safety. In place of this, the temporary legislation instead encouraged and provided guidance for alternative consultation methods. We are using a number of digital and remote tools to help you to provide feedback on our proposals. The purpose of this webpage is to share our indicative proposals with the community and other interested parties, prior to the submission of a Full Planning Application to Armagh, Banbridge & Craigavon Borough Council. We are committed to engaging with all members of the wider Banbridge community and are now undertaking a period of Pre-Application Community Consultation (PACC) on our proposals. The feedback received will be shared with the wider design team and will help shape our indicative proposals prior to submission of any Planning Application. We will prepare a Pre-Application Community Consultation (PACC) Report which will provide a summary of all feedback, our response and how we have incorporated any appropriate feedback into the final proposals for the scheme. This report will be submitted as part of the Full Planning Application to Armagh, Banbridge & Craigavon Borough Councill. Purpose of Consultation and Next Steps

Lotus Property are an experienced Property Investment, Development & Asset Management Company, based in Northern Ireland, with UK and Ireland reach. They have a multi-disciplinary team of 35 staff covering banking, finance, property, and construction. In recent years, Lotus Property have developed the following schemes:

The Boulevard, Banbridge

• Full planning permission was granted in January 2005 (Planning Ref: Q/2004/0482/F) for the development of a Retail and Business Park at Cascum Road comprising a Factory Outlet Centre, now known as ‘The Boulevard’. • The Boulevard Shopping Outlet first opened its doors in 2007, and since this time has become one of Northern Irelands premier outlet shopping destinations. • The Junction, Retail and Leisure Park, first opened its doors in 2004, but struggled during the economic downturn. When Lotus Group purchased the site in 2016, they subsequently submitted a planning application to redevelop/rearrange the site. • An extensive investment of £30m is currently being delivered in phases, with the aim to make this scheme Northern Ireland’s largest Factory Outlet; Retail and Leisure destination. • Full planning permission achieved for 246no. dwellings, with a mix of semi-detached and detached family dwellings. Spaciously laid out around central formal open space arrangement. • Development was winner of Belfast Telegraph Residential Development of the Year and finalist for CEF Private Housing Award in 2018. • Murdock’s Builder’s Merchants was established in 1982 and over the past 35 years has grown to consist of 14 merchant branches across the island of Ireland. • Site acquisition and planning permissions for various additional branches, including Antrim and Dungannon amongst others, has ensured the growth and success of the company. The Junction, Antrim Hillcrest Village, McKnight’s Hill, Newry Murdock Builder Merchants, Various

Glasgiven Contracts Ltd. is an established Principal Contractor with over 30 years’ experience in providing first class workmanship and delivering high quality projects across Northern & Southern Ireland. Glasgiven Contracts Ltd. specialise in Design & Build Development and Construction, Traditional Construction and Project Management Services across a range of Building and Civil Engineering projects within the Public and Private Sectors including Education, Health, Sport & Leisure and Sustainable Buildings.

Strategic and Local Context

The town of Banbridge is the largest settlement in Banbridge District, with a population of approximately 16,637 (Census 2011 data). The RDS 2035 identifies Banbridge as a main hub for economic development opportunities within the District. In recent years, the economic development of the district has been mirrored by significant investment in wider social and environmental improvements. Banbridge boasts excellent transport links between Northern Ireland and the Republic, as it lies on the A1 ‘Belfast to Dublin Key Transport Corridor’. It is located approximately 25miles south-west of Belfast City Centre, 27 miles from Belfast Port, 47 miles from Larne Port. and 14 miles north of Newry. The opportunities this creates ensures that it is the most sustainable location for economic development within Banbridge District, which is consistent with the RDS.

Site Location Plan The subject lands are located south of Banbridge and to the northeast of existing commercial units at Bridgewater Retail Park. The total site area measures approximately 6.6ha (16.3 acres). The site is accessed off Cascum Link Road and via a private one-way estate road which currently is used for servicing and deliveries to Tesco’s Extra store and Home Bargains etc. The site is flanked to the west by agricultural land, Bannview Road and Bannview Care Home to the north, and lands to the east have recently been developed for warehousing.

Area Plan Context Within the Banbridge, Newry and Mourne Area Plan (BNMAP) 2015, adopted in October 2013, the site is located within the settlement development limit of Banbridge and zoned for Economic Development (Ref: BE 33) – see Figure 1 . The Area Plan states that in order to reflect the status of Banbridge as a main hub located on a key transport corridor, as identified in the RDS, a total of 32ha of land are zoned at two major locations for economic development through the Area Plan. This is to ensure that there is a variety of locations to allow for a range of economic development uses such as: Business (Class B1), Light Industrial (Class B2), General Industrial (Class B3) and Storage and Distribution (Class B4). The Key Site Requirement associated with Policy Zoning Ref: ‘BE 33’ is set out below: “Access shall be from the proposed development led A1 / Newry Road / Cascum Road grade separated junction (Proposal BE 55) via the adjacent site (Zoning BE 35).”

Figure 1 – BNMAP 2015 Banbridge Map No. 2/02a Extract

Site History

The subject site and wider lands have a positive history of approvals for retailing and economic development. These have been implemented and altered since the original approval, which incorporated the adjacent Bridgewater Retail Park and The Boulevard amongst other lands. These permissions have been subject to minor amendments in terms of the use class / design from that originally approved. Those relevant to the site include the following:

Planning Reference Description of development

Site for the development of 11.765 hectares of business park area as (1) a retail warehouse park comprising a gross floorspace of 40160 sqm in five units, (2) the extension of the business park area by an additional 11.33 hectares of land comprising general industry, light industry, storage and distribution and call centres in substitution for the same proposals being displaced by the proposed retail warehousing, (3) amended road improvement works to include a further new road bridge over the A1 and further slip roads, (4) alterations to layout of approved hotel, petrol filling station and fast food outlet (sizes unchanged) to accommodate changed road layout with addition of tourist information centre within the hotel. Amendment to approved Retail and Business Park at Cascum Road, Ref: Q/2003/0669/O. Development of 60.41 hectares site as (1) a Factory Outlet Centre comprising a gross floorspace of 19787 sqm, (2) a retail warehouse park comprising a gross floorspace of 40160 sqm in five units, (3) a business park comprising general industry, light industry, storage and distribution in 29 units with a gross floorspace of 47612 sqm, (4) alterations to layout of approved hotel, petrol filling station and fast food outlet at 4248 sqm (5) an amended road layout to include a new road bridge over the A1, additional slip roads and roundabouts, (6) landscaping and ancillary works for the above. Alteration to approved retail and business park with factory outlet centre (under construction in accordance with full planning permission ref: Q/2004/0482/F as subsequently amended refs: Q/2005/0659/F, Q/2005/0774/F, Q/2005/0875/F and most recently Q/2005/1224/F), comprising revised layout and uses consisting of 37 light industry units totalling 11330 sqm gross, 3 call centre units totalling 3705 sq. m gross and 18 warehousing and distribution units totalling 8476 sqm gross, with associated parking and adjustment of internal road layout.

Q/2003/0669/O

Approved - 17th December 2003

Q/2004/0482/F

Approved - 28th January 2005

Q/2006/1067/F

Approved - 11th September 2007

Site Proposals Lotus Property (UK) Ltd. are seeking feedback on their site proposals to construct a new Storage & Distribution facility (c. 14,000m2 / 150,000ft2) along with a bespoke Headquarters building for local building contractor, Glasgiven Contracts Ltd. The site is sustainably located and boasts easy access to the A1 ‘Belfast to Dublin Key Transport Corridor’. The subject lands are to be accessed from the existing one-way estate road linking to Cascum Link Road, in line with Policy Zoning Ref: BE 33 ‘Key Site Requirement’ as noted previously. Storage and Distribution (Class B4) The Storage & Distribution element (Class B4) of this development is to include for large format portal frame warehousing, finished in colour metal cladding, with associated dock-levellers and HGV parking. These are to have an eaves height of c. 12m, enabling effective operation and serviceability for import/export of goods. An ancillary element of office accommodation (Class B1) will be included to ensure the efficient running of the development. The site will be appropriately secured with fencing, along with a landscaped buffer retained to the north of the site. The proposal includes in-curtilage parking for both vehicles and bicycles. Bespoke Headquarters and Associated Storage (Class B1/B2) The bespoke Headquarters and associated storage (Class B1/B4) element of the scheme is proposed to become a new operational base for a local building contractor, who operates in both the North and South of Ireland. The proposals include for 2 no. two storey buildings to cater for staff overseeing the logistics of storage & distribution of building products/machinery across the island of Ireland. The site layout provides sufficient in-curtilage car and cycle parking associated with this use.

Community and Economic Benefits The development proposals presented accord with the policies as set out within the Banbridge, Newry and Mourne Area Plan (BNMAP) 2015, seeking to develop a large-scale Storage & Distribution facility in this highly accessible and sustainable location close to the A1 junction. The proposed scheme will deliver a number of significant short and long term benefits for Banbridge District and the local community as outlined below: • The Storage & Distribution facility represents a key logistical base to bolster and secure import/export supply chains through Northern Ireland; • The bespoke headquarters for a local building contractor will aid the expansion plans of the company, and help to secure additional contracts across the province; • Development of this zoned employment land (Ref: BE 33) will make a positive contribution to the local economy and deliver much needed employment opportunities at a time when the region is suffering from the impact of COVID-19;

• The scheme represents a significant development investment with a gross value of circa £15m; and

• Will support in excess of 50-60 construction jobs and apprenticeships, with the economic impact set to positively benefit suppliers and subcontractors in the local area.

• Once operational, the development will support c. 250 jobs.

Have Your Say Give us a call:

If you would like a member of the team to discuss our proposals over the phone and answer any questions, you can call us on 028 9043 4333 Write to us:

If you wish to make comments on the proposals you can also do so in writing by sending comments to:

Address: TSA Planning , 20 May Street,

Belfast, BT1 4NL

Email:

info@tsaplanning.co.uk

Complete a Comment Card: Comments cards, along with a self-addressed envelope, have been delivered to local businesses and properties within the vicinity of the proposal site. These can be filled in and returned to us as directed. Alternatively, electronic comment cards can be completed via the online form submission on our website homepage: www.bridgewaterbusinesspark.com Download the Proposal Pack You can download an electronic copy of the proposals pack on our website, all you have to do is click on the link within the homepage. If you have any issues downloading the pdf then please call us on 028 9043 4333, or alternatively email: info@tsaplanning.co.uk Closing date for feedback – Monday 12th April 2021, 5pm