PLANS to bulldoze existing buildings at the Mereside Campus at Alderley Park and build two offices and laboratories for life science uses have been recommended for approval.
Alderley Park Limited has applied to Cheshire East for full planning permission to demolish the buildings on two separate but adjacent sites within the commercial area of Alderley Park, and for outline permission to build the offices and laboratories, together with ancillary retail and café provision.
The application has been welcomed by the council’s economic development service (EDS).
In a report due to go before the strategic planning board tomorrow (Wednesday), the EDS states: “The growth of the science and technology sector is a central aim of the local plan. LPS61 (Alderley Park opportunity site) identifies the importance of Alderley Park as a location offering scope for development for human health science R&D, technologies and processes.”
The EDS adds the anticipated benefits of the scheme are 650 construction jobs including supply chain jobs; up to 1,600 new on-site jobs and 320 off-site jobs.
The application is linked via a cross-funding proposal with a scheme to build a retirement complex comprising 159 extra care units on a separate site at Heatherley Woods within Alderley Park.
That proposal is also on tomorrow’s agenda for the council’s strategic planning board but will be treated as a separate application.
But Nether Alderley Parish Council has raised concerns about the funding.
“It is not clear where the funding is coming for this development,” states the parish council, in a representation to Cheshire East planners. “The parish council feels that this should be from the science park and not from a potential permission and development of Symphony Park [the retirement community proposal].”
In response, the planning officer states, in his report to councillors: “Whilst the parish council have raised the matter of how this proposal is to be funded, this is not considered relevant to the determination of this application as it needs to be considered on its own merits.”
He adds: “It is however a relevant consideration for an associated application for a retirement community also on this agenda, but this matter is addressed in that application.”
The officer recommended the scheme be approved, subject to conditions, stating: “The application proposes life science development that the re-purposed Alderley Park was set up to encourage and is fully supported.”
The planning meeting takes place at 10am at Macclesfield Town Hall tomorrow (Wednesday, March 1).
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