Luton Borough Council has approved plans to demolish the former Vauxhall headquarters in Luton, with plans to build a new business park on the site.
Plans for the development of the Prologis Park site were submitted by Prologis UK, with the 18-acre Griffin House site on Osborne Road set to be demolished and replaced with up to 34,250 sq m of flexible industrial and logistics floorspace.
According to the developer, the new site could create up to 450 new jobs and boost the economy.
Included in the proposed development is an on-site training and development facility (The Hub), a new publicly accessible link between Osborne Road and Manor Park Road, access arrangements, parking and hard and soft landscaping.
The existing access points to the site on Osborne Road and Windmill Road would be maintained and redeveloped and modified to provide safe, legible access for vehicles and pedestrians.
The existing Park Street access would only be used for maintenance of the substation and in emergencies.
A key part of the proposal is to open up and celebrate the River Lea as a feature of the site and a pedestrian and cycleway would be provided alongside the river, accessible at all times of the day.
Planning permission is still being sought for the western parcel of the site, which includes 13,753 sq m of employment floorspace, 105 car parking spaces, including eight accessible spaces and ten electric vehicle charging spaces, 66 cycle parking spaces and 11 motorcycle parking spaces.
Caroline Musker, head of planning at Prologis UK, said: “The regeneration of Griffin House and the BWI Group site into a high-quality logistics and business park will deliver approximately 450 new jobs and significant investment for Luton, alongside a new skills and training facility to support local people wanting a career in logistics – one of the UK’s fastest growing industries. The regeneration will open up the River Lea and create a green link with new pedestrian and cycle paths.”
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