Developer wins contract for key Lake District site

Windermere

Manchester developer Urban Splash has been appointed to a key scheme in the Lake District.

The firm will develop land next to Windermere railway station following a bidding process which involved 30 firms.

Those behind the project are the Windermere Gateway Project Steering Group a consortium made up of; Cumbria Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP), South Lakeland District Council (SLDC), National Trust, Lake District National Park Authority (LDNPA), and onsite retailers, Booths and Lakeland.

The area involved includes land around the railway platform, car parks and bus terminal, Booths and Lakeland stores and nine hectares of National Trust investment land, identified for ‘mixed use’ development by the LDNPA in their draft Local Plan.

Urban Splash has been appointed as the development partner by the National Trust, with the support of the Windermere Gateway Project Steering Group.

Property expert JLL advised on the appointment process which attracted interest from over 30 partners.

Any proposals will be subject to planning permission and would need to meet a number of policies, including those on affordable homes, sustainable transport, local infrastructure provision, landscape protection and design quality.

Jim Jackson, deputy chair of Cumbria LEP and chair of the Windermere Gateway Project Steering Group said: “The potential developments around Windermere station are very welcome enabling improvements to the transport infrastructure, local economy and additional local housing.

“It is great to see partnerships come together to provide improvements in Cumbria.”

The vision for the site includes transforming steeply sloping land – with a Grade II listed farmhouse – gifted to the National Trust as investment land.

Mike Innerdale, of the National Trust, said: “There is a unique opportunity for us to make a difference in Windermere through a gift that supports our conservation work.

“It means developing land next to the station in a sensitive way to provide housing for locals, meet employment needs and provide a world-class entry point and transport hub to the Lakes. It involves other landowners and stakeholders. It is very much a shared ambition and a partnership project supported by many.

“We are at a very early stage of establishing what sort of development is viable on this challenging site.”

Urban Splash has won 416 awards for its work in sensitive restoration, great design and architecture, and regeneration.

Director Nathan Cornish says the firm is incredibly proud to be part of the project. He said: “It is an outstanding opportunity to take forward a rare development site in arguably the most beautiful part of the country.

“Urban Splash has transformed many listed buildings and sensitive sites across the country, and we will need to use all of our skills and experiences to deliver something befitting of this important gateway site to the Lake District.”

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