Housebuilding to begin at Prince of Wales development
HOUSEBUILDING is set to start at the Prince of Wales development in Pontefract with a £28m development.
Harworth Estates, the UK property regeneration company, has completed its first residential land sale at the 77-acre site to Ben Bailey Homes.
The transaction of the 11-acre parcel of land will enable Ben Bailey Homes to build 131 three and four-bedroom homes on the site of the pit yard at the former Prince of Wales Colliery.
The development was granted outline planning consent in December 2013 for 917 homes and 265,000 sq ft of employment space, as well as a range of community facilities, including retail units, cafes and medical and community centres. Completion of the entire development is expected to take between eight and 10 years.
The site’s development also includes the former spoil heap, next to the pit yard, which will be transformed into a country park, which will combine with Pontefract Park and Pontefract Racecourse.
The development 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 road corridor is expected to be completed in February.
Ben Bailey Homes’ managing director, Mark Mitchell said: “The purchase of land at the former Prince of Wales colliery represents a significant investment for Ben Bailey Homes. This £28m development of 131 new homes will be the very first for us in Pontefract and forms part of the businesses ongoing strategy for a major roll out of new developments across Yorkshire in 2015.
“Works will commence later this month with the first homes ready for occupation in later in the summer.”
Chris Davidson, development manager for Harworth Estates, added: “This is an important first transaction in the regeneration of the former colliery, demonstrating our ability to create homes on brownfield land. Ben Bailey Homes is a high-quality housebuilder, with whom we have built up a strong relationship.”
Peter Box, leader of Wakefield Council, said that the scheme will make a huge difference not just to Pontefract but the entire Wakefield district.
“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,” he said.
