Development land to be released at Enterprise Zone

Development land at a major Blackpool business park expansion is set to become available this summer, potentially creating hundreds of new jobs on the Fylde coast.

Blackpool Council’s Executive has agreed to sell development land between Common Edge Road and Amy Johnson Way to businesses looking to expand or relocate.

 The first round of plots will be available for sale from spring and access to the land for site investigations available from this summer.

 A new £18.5m road connecting Common Edge Road and Amy Johnson Way is currently being built and is expected to open later this year.

 Cllr Mark Smith, cabinet member for economy and built Environment at Blackpool Council, said: “The Enterprise Zone is a major part of our plans to make Blackpool better by creating jobs for local people.

 “By creating new development land, we will help Blackpool and Fylde coast businesses to grow and expand. We’re currently building the road to access this land and are making great progress.

"We expect this land to be popular with business in Blackpool who want to expand, and anybody interested should get in touch with the Enterprise Zone team as soon as possible.”

 The plots range from 5,800sqm to 15,500 sqm and will be accessible from the new road.

Each plot will benefit from a dedicated electricity supply and well as utilities and fast fibre internet connectivity. Outline planning consent for office, industrial and warehousing uses was granted in 2022.

 The road is being constructed by George Cox and Sons and also includes widening of Common Edge Road to reduce congestion and a new access road into Oakwood Close.

Funding for the road has been supported by a £7.5m grant from the UK Government, as part of the Blackpool Town Deal awarded in 2022.

 Blackpool Council’s Executive also approved the continued £54.17m funding of new roads and infrastructure across the whole Enterprise Zone, as well as progressing plans to relocate airport infrastructure closer to the runway and pursue a masterplan for Silicon Sands – a new data and technology campus.

 Silicon Sands would be a 40 acre site north of Blackpool Airport by Squires Gate Lane.

Starting with a series of carbon friendly data centres powered by renewable energy, the area would embrace the growth in Artificial Intelligence (AI) to create a technology campus for growing high performance companies, creating high growth jobs for the Fylde coast.

 A new airport office and small passenger terminal is currently being built, with the released land being available for a new 6MW 36,000sqft data centre demonstrator as the first development at Silicon Sands.

Supported by a £2m grant from Lancashire Combined County Authority as part of the devolution deal, an outline planning application for the data centre is expected to be submitted this summer and investors being sought to fund the development.

 Blackpool Airport Enterprise Zone is already one of the north west’s premier business destinations with over 200 businesses and around 4,000 employees working from the area.

Directly accessible from the M55 motorway, the enterprise zone also lies near Squires Gate train station and Starr Gate tram station and incorporates Blackpool Airport.

 Blackpool Council is the accountable body for Blackpool Airport Enterprise Zone, which is a 144-hectare site across Blackpool and Fylde and is earmarked to create 5,000 new jobs by 2041.

 For more information on the Blackpool Airport Enterprise Zone, visit www.blackpoolez.com.