CVAM plan resurrects Pilkington site

A former North Wales glassworks is to be reborn as a commercial vehicle dealership, with outline permission granted for further business space.

The ex-Pilkington site at Glascoed Road within St Asaph Business Park has been empty since the manufacturer departed in 2008, with buildings being demolished the following year. The plot is now known as the Vista site.

In a decision dated 29 March, Denbighshire County Council has given full consent for CVAM, which has been advised by Cadnant Planning, to set up its operations at the 17-acre site. Lawray Architects has designed the scheme.

Permission has been granted for 8,521 sq ft of business space, in the form of a two-storey office and workshop space, at this point with phase one also including space for up to 276 vehicles. The company sells around 350 vehicles per year.

CVAM purchase heavy commercial vehicles at lease end, or when companies enter administration, and then lease them out. The business exports to the EU, Africa and Malaysia and since being formed in Denbigh in 2000 has acquired a further Welsh company, LJ Watkins.

The company has now outgrown its two two-acre sites on Rhyl Road in Denbigh, holdings that only have space for around 90 vehicles at a time and are surrounded by housing and other uses.

According to Cadnant’s planning statement, CVAM is spending significant sums on external overspill space, estimated at £350,000 over three years.

A potential move to Deeside or further into North West England has been looked at, but the company’s preference has been to remain in Denbighshire, where it is a major spender in the automotive supply chain.

The outline consent for phase two covers five small to medium-sized business units, to house light industrial or office uses. The largest two, as set out in planning documents, are around 10,000 sq ft each.