£500m regeneration scheme gets go-ahead after Government decides against ‘call-in’

How parts of the scheme will look

A £500m scheme that could create hundreds of jobs in Lincoln is set to go ahead after government decided not to ‘call in’ the scheme’s planning application.

A planning decision notice for the project has been issued as the Secretary of State’s office confirmed it will not be scrutinising the proposals.

City of Lincoln Council’s planning committee approved the Western Growth Corridor plans on January 12.

Western Growth Corridor, which will be jointly delivered by City of Lincoln Council and Lindum Western Growth Community Ltd, will be the largest project undertaken in the city for decades, bringing more than £500m worth of investment into Lincoln over its lifetime and providing hundreds of jobs locally.

The development will supply the city with 3,200 homes, a leisure village, an industrial park and transport infrastructure that will help alleviate some of Lincoln’s worst traffic problems.

There will also be a new spine road, which will run through the centre of the development, providing a main road to connect the development into the city centre and surrounding area.

Now that the call-in has been refused, initial works on site are expected to begin later this year.

Leader of the city council, councillor Ric Metcalfe, said: “We are very pleased that the Secretary of State has rejected the call-in request for the Western Growth Corridor planning application, giving city councillors the ability to make the ultimate decision for the site.

“The decision notice for the site has now been successfully issued, and I look forward with the project starting in the near future.”

Metcalfe says he has written to Lincolnshire County Council to better understand the reasoning behind its request.

Mark Foster, Lindum planning director, said: “We are delighted that the plans have not been called in by the Secretary of State and we are now looking forward to re-engaging with the local community, ward councillors and Lincolnshire County Council as highways authority, to deliver a scheme that’s right for Lincoln.

“We have taken note of concerns raised during the application process, and articulated on the night of the committee, and we want to work together to ensure we get this right.”

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