Council to lease former tip to Waterside car recyclers

A former city council recycling centre will be leased to the owners of a vehicle recycling plant looking to relocate from the Waterside regeneration area.

Leicester City Council has agreed to offer a 20-year lease on the former Bridge Road recycling centre to the owners of the End of Life Centre.

The car recycling business, which is currently based in Jarvis Street, will relocate as part of the ambitious regeneration plans for the Waterside area.

Planning approval for the proposed conversion of the former council recycling centre was given in April, and the decision to offer the lease paves the way for the company to move to the new site.

The lease will be offered at a rent of £25,000 per year, with an option to purchase the site at a minimum of £225,000.

City Mayor Peter Soulsby said: “I am pleased that we have been able to agree terms and find somewhere suitable in the city for this business to relocate to.

“We have ambitious plans for the regeneration of the long-neglected Waterside area. Although we already own a great deal of the area earmarked for the first phase of redevelopment, the council does still need to acquire some land and property in the area.

“We’d always prefer to achieve this through negotiation and agreement, and to only use CPO powers as a last resort.”

The former Bridge Road recycling centre was closed in 2014, when it was replaced with a £3.5milllion new facility in Gypsum Close.