LAND home to the former Parkside Colliery has been labelled as ‘unequivocally’ one of the best sites to meet employment need during a public inquiry.

The virtual public inquiry over plans to regenerate the former Parkside Colliery site in Newton-le-Willows started last week.

Proposals to redevelop former colliery, which was shut in 1993, were originally submitted in January 2018 by Parkside Regeneration LLP, a joint venture between developer Langtree and St Helens Borough Council.

St Helens Borough Council granted outline planning permission in December 2019, while also giving the green light for the Parkside Link Road project, which is seen as a key element to unlocking the potential of the site.

Warrington Borough Council also granted planning permission for the £40 million link road scheme, which will see a single carriageway road built from the former colliery to Winwick Lane, adjacent to Junction 22 of the M6 motorway, by-passing congestion at Winwick.

David Rolinson, a chartered town planner who has been involved with the site since 2012, spoke today, Thursday.

Mr Rolinson, a member of the Royal Town Planning Institute, said the site "counters weaknesses" in St Helens, builds on the locational strengths of the area and meets a specific locational requirement.

He said: “So as well as the locational advantages, it is also a scarce resource.”

Mr Rolinson labelled it is a derelict site which has opportunity.

He said: “It’s got a residue, it’s got a legacy and it’s well related to the urban area and is contained.

St Helens Star:

 

“I think from a scare resource point of view, I hate to use the word unique because you hear these things a lot, this is a very, very good scarce resource that should be utilised.”

Mr Rolinson also told the inquiry that the site was deliverable.

Meanwhile, green belt was also discussed during the inquiry today, along with the need for employment space with warehousing.

Mr Rolinson said it is "one of the best" employment sites he has been involved in.

He added: “The evidence on supply is compelling. It’s thorough, it’s robust, it’s been done at a regional level, at a local plan level, at a planning application level, it’s been interrogated across the piste.

“It’s also, as I set out in my evidence, being done in Warrington and in Manchester City Region, which of course includes Wigan, and both of those areas confirm that they also need to release green belt in order to meet the need.

“There is no objection from any other local authority, in Liverpool City Region or Manchester City Region or Warrington, on need, supply or green belt.

“It simply doesn’t exist – everybody understands, all the authorities understand that.

“So I think there is a really, really compelling case and I think Parkside is unequivocally one of the best performing sites to meet that need.”