Updated plans for a former West Cumbrian factory site have been revealed.
Genr8ated want to demolish buildings on the Cleator Mills site and build a new multi-million-pound business park for large firms including Sellafield and smaller local businesses.
It has reapplied to Copeland Borough Council for permission to carry out the work after updated documents covering ecology and bat and flood risk assessments were requested by planning officials.
Mark Walker, principal owner and director of Cleator Mills Business Park, said: “The business park will ultimately provide a mix of small medium and a couple of larger scale units. All my family is in West Cumbria, my roots are in Copeland and we’re just keen to support good, honest and local businesses.
“I’m not saying it’s an innovation park, but it we’re keen to sponsor local outfits and a number of those enquiries have come from the Sellafield supply chain. The next round of investment into the site will be a couple of million pounds investment into it.
“There is virtually nothing in terms of new build premises that are tailored to local needs around here, the site is designed to be very accessible and ultimately in a very green landscape and I think there’s no reason why that can’t work in harmony with nice design.”
The site started life as flax mill employing 600 people. It also set the stage for a leap forward in rights for women workers when the female workforce went on strike in 1915.
In 1938, it was then turned into a factory for hat brand Kangol by Jaques Spreiregen. The company produced hats worn by the likes The Beatles, Princess Diana, Eminem and Samuel L Jackson. The site closed in August 2009 with the loss of 32 jobs after 71 years of hat making.
In the latest application, planning permission for two new commercial units has been lodged.
The first unit will house local dog day care business Let’s Go Walkies and will provide a base for the business to centre its administration and day care from.
The development of the unit will centre around a day room accessible via a ‘doggy door’ from reception, to provide access for animals. The day room will be a large space for dogs to socialise with outside access available through a rear door.
The second unit will house a new soft play and café with four part-time jobs and two full-time jobs set to be created. Both units will have nine new car parking spaces between them and will sit opposite to the two former mill buildings.
The demolition of the remaining buildings will make room for a warehouse and offices. Operations at the site are set to involve the hiring of plant equipment on a commercial basis in connection with work at Sellafield.
The former factory buildings are described as dilapidated but the wider vision for the site is for the larger of the three buildings to provide a café and conference facilities on the ground floor.
Plans will not involve any new or altered vehicle access to the site, any new public roads or pedestrian access. The warehouse development will also create 19 parking spaces for cars, two disability spaces and two for motorcycles. No protected or priority species are found at the site.
