FIREM awaits approval for 1.3m sq ft Chorley industrial
The council will next week determine the developer’s plans to construct two large sheds on 100 acres close to Junction 3 of the M65 and the Blackburn border.
FI Real Estate Management lodged a hybrid application for its 1.3m Feniscowles scheme in November 2024. Next week it will go before Chorley Council’s planning committee with a recommendation to approve.
The development features plans for to units, one providing 533,000 sq ft and another offering 752,000 sq ft. Consent for the sheds is sought in outline while full permission is requested for enabling works.
FIREM estimates the development could generate up to 1,300 jobs and contribute nearly £400m to the local economy.
Although situated in the Green Belt, the emerging Central Lancashire Local Plan has identified Chorley’s M65 corridor as an opportunity to meet future employment needs.
Chorley Council’s planning report states that development would “clearly contribute to economic growth within Chorley and Blackburn supporting the provision of employment through job creation within the units that would be developed”.
To learn more about the project, search for reference number 24/00847/OUTMAJ on Chorley Council’s planning portal.
Plan Red is advising on planning matters and DMWR Architects is leading on design.
Chorley-based FIREM already has one large scheme underway on its home patch; the 1m sq ft, three-phase redevelopment of Botany Bay off Junction 8 of the M61.
FIREM is expanding rapidly. As well as the 2.3m sq ft of new-build accommodation it is delivering in Chorley, the firm also has a large presence on Wrexham Industrial estate, amassing a 3.1m sq ft portfolio.
Nationally, FIREM’s portfolio spans 15m sq ft.
