Cottam Brickworks redevelopment approved
Cottam Hall Properties have been granted planning permission for an £80m mixed-use centre on the 32-acre site former Cottam Brickworks site in Preston.
The plans for the plot off Tom Benson Way designed by Cassidy + Ashton include retail outlets, a public house, a restaurant, a petrol filling station and a crèche. The blueprint also includes a health centre, which could accommodate a GP surgery and a pharmacy. The development totals 100,000 sq ft.
The approved application was a resubmission of an earlier plan by Lancashire-based planning consultancy De Pol Associates.
Cottam Hall was initially granted planning approval from Preston City Council in July 2011 for the site.
The earlier proposals included a 47,000 sq ft supermarket, 155 apartments overlooking a marina, 17 three-storey townhouses, and 20 two-storey family homes, alongside a business park of 45,060 sq ft and ancillary restaurants and shops.
The site’s designation as a district centre for use by the community in Preston’s emerging plan meant that some aspects of the development needed to be changed to suit this use. De Pol’s application proposed replacing the approved supermarket and offices with the mixed-use development.
In order to progress the development of the site, Cottam Hall had to purchase a further 19-acres and obtain planning permission for an offsite reserve on a derelict sports ground. The developer also had to negotiate access agreements with the Homes & Communities Agency and Lancashire County Council, which were granted in 2014.
Marco De Pol, managing director of De Pol Associates, said: “We have been advising Cottam Hall Properties for a number of years on planning matters relating to the redevelopment of the brickworks site.
“Following significant investment and commitment to the site Cottam Hall Properties are understandably thrilled that the plans for the new district centre have been approved by the planning committee.”