Work is underway to pave the way for the next phase of development at one of Yorkshire’s leading business parks.
The works will unlock a further 27 acres of development land at the Melton West business park, west of Hull, heralding further investment at the growing commercial location.
Wykeland Group, owner and developer of the Melton West business park, is investing £1m to create a new 400-metre access road and related drainage and services infrastructure to open up land in the north east part of the site, adjacent to the A63, with the works delivered by East Yorkshire-based civil engineering business C R Reynolds.
The new phase will also allow access for a £10m, next-generation Mercedes-Benz dealership, with work due to commence on that facility soon.
Wykeland Managing Director Dominic Gibbons and Property Director David Donkin visited the site to see work in progress with representatives of East Riding of Yorkshire Council – Leader Cllr Richard Burton; Portfolio Holder for Local Economic Growth and Prosperity, Cllr Jane Evison; and Director of Planning and Economic Regeneration, Alan Menzies.
The launch of the latest phase comes just months after Wykeland completed a major acquisition of a neighbouring site to expand the successful Melton West development and make it one of Yorkshire and the Humber’s largest commercial hubs.
That multi-million pounds deal for the purchase of the former Melton Park site from St. Modwen increased the total size of the Melton West development to 200 acres. The development will now provide up to 2.85m sq ft of space, including existing operations, and offers opportunities for manufacturing, warehouse, distribution and office uses ranging from 10,000 sq ft right up to the potential for a single 1m sq ft “mega shed”.
The parcel of land opened up by the latest works is zoned for employment use in the East Riding Local Plan and will accommodate up to 400,000 sq ft of new development, potentially creating up to 800 jobs and delivering a further major boost to the local economy.
Wykeland Managing Director Dominic Gibbons said: “We’re delighted to launch this phase of Melton West and to invite members of East Riding of Yorkshire Council, who share our commitment to supporting enterprise and investment, to the site.
“The council had the vision to zone this land in the Local Plan for employment uses as far back as 1996 and we’re delivering on this vision.
“Melton West has been a huge success as a location of choice for leading businesses seeking the environment to prosper and grow.
“Well over 1,000 people are now employed on the business park and, with the addition of the former Melton Park site, Melton West now has the potential to generate over 5,000 jobs.
“This latest phase will enable more businesses to invest and create jobs and wealth. We’re pleased to open up these opportunities and look forward to working with employers to deliver on them.”
Councillor Richard Burton, Leader of East Riding of Yorkshire Council, said: “Melton West is a successful, well-established and well-recognised business park and the council is pleased to have created the planning framework for its successful development so far and for this latest phase.
“I’m delighted that work on the next phase of the site is getting underway as it will create hundreds of jobs, provide a major boost to the local economy and see the opening of the prestigious Mercedes showroom.”
Melton West has easy access via the A63 and M62 to the national motorway network and is close to the Humber ports, the UK’s busiest trading complex. The business park also benefits from Enterprise Zone Status, meaning investors can enjoy discounted business rates.
The business park already has 750,000 sq ft of completed development, with leading businesses on site including Heron Foods, generator manufacturer Allam Marine and shower maker Kohler Mira, as well as a major facility for Humberside Police’s specialist teams and support staff.
Wykeland is one of Yorkshire and the Humber’s leading commercial developers with a development pipeline of almost £400m within the region. Other flagship Wykeland schemes include the fast-growing Bridgehead business park close to the Humber Bridge and the @TheDock tech campus in Hull’s Fruit Market waterfront quarter.
Wykeland is part of the Wykeland Beal joint venture with East Yorkshire-based Beal Homes which is driving forward the regeneration of the Fruit Market, in partnership with Hull City Council. Wykeland is also working with Hambleton District Council to transform the former Northallerton Prison site in North Yorkshire into the £17m Treadmills retail, leisure and business destination.
For more information on Melton West go to www.wykeland.co.uk/developments/meltonwest-business-park.
Agents for the development are Garness Jones and CBRE.