Major regeneration work starts in Yorkshire
DEVELOPMENT work to create a mixed-use community at a former colliery site in Yorkshire has begun today.
Harworth Estates has received detailed planning consent from Wakefield Council for development of a 77-acre site at the former Prince of Wales Colliery site in Pontefract.
UK property regeneration company, Harworth, has been given consent for 917 homes and 230,000 sq ft of employment space, along with shops, cafes, a medical centre, a community centre, nursery and parkland.
The Prince of Wales project forms part of Wakefield Council’s wider regeneration plans for Pontefract. The site provides the road corridor for the proposed Northern Link Road, which will provide a gateway into Pontefract from the M62 and open up further space for residential and commercial development, a critical piece of infrastructure to ensure the future sustained growth of the area.
The Prince of Wales colliery was a drift mine founded in 1880 and produced 1.5m tonnes of coal every year, until its closure in 2002.
Coun Peter Box, leader of Wakefield Council, said: “The start of work on the former Prince of Wales colliery site represents a significant step forward for the regeneration of Pontefract.
“The nature of this scheme will bring significant inward investment to the area with the creation of new homes, new facilities and new opportunities for the residents of Pontefract. The site also forms an important part of the development of the new northern link road which will bring improved connectivity between Pontefract and the rest of the region.
“Although times are tough we are still achieving a lot and by working with Harworth Estates and other partners on ambitious projects such as these, we can continue to encourage economic growth across the district.”
Harworth will create a new country park, access ways and footpaths.
The property firm is also collaborating for the fourth time with Alkane Energy, one of the UK’s fastest growing independent power generators.
The site at Prince of Wales, its 23rd operational site, is a 1.5MW facility, which provides localised power generation for the area electricity network using methane from the former mine workings.
Owen Michaelson, chief executive at Harworth Estates, said: “We have extensive experience in delivering complex sustainable regeneration projects such as this and look forward to continuing our close working relationship with Wakefield Council to deliver a scheme which will be transformational for Pontefract.
“Providing almost 1,000 homes and enabling further development of the Northern Link Road, the scheme will help stimulate further residential and commercial development, ensuring future economic growth in the area.”
Stephen Land, Alkane’s operations director, said: “We are delighted to announce the opening of a new Alkane site and are pleased to be successfully working with Harworth Estates and Wakefield Council on this exciting opportunity. This is exactly the type of investment required at a time of scarce generating capacity in the UK market.”
