Approval nears for job-creating industrial estate expansion

Plans to build about 175,000 sq ft of space at an industrial estate in Greater Manchester – in a move which would generate almost 500 jobs – look set to be approved.Commercial Development Projects is behind the application for the Northbank Industrial Estate in Salford. A trio of units are envisaged on a plot historically used in association with the operations of the Manchester Ship Canal.The first unit would be the largest at 126,000 sq ft. It would be bounded and accessed by Darby Road to the north, the Manchester Ship Canal to the east and Omega Engineering to the west, and adjoining a smaller two-storey office block.It would also include a car park with 268 spaces and a service yard with 35 trailer bay spots.Unit two would be positioned on the corner of Cadishead Way and Steuber Drive, measuring about 40,000 sq ft. The third and final facility would be “comparably smaller” than the others, providing about 9,400 sq ft of space.The three sites would be expected to generate between 130 and 350 jobs, 40 and 110 jobs, and ten and 30 jobs respectively.A design and access statement submitted as part of the application notes that the development would present a number of “key opportunities”. These include new roles and investment both having direct and indirect positive effects on the local economy; the chance for new or existing businesses to relocate within Salford and expand existing operations in the Northbank Industrial Estate; bringing forward a development that will enhance the wider industrial surroundings in terms of design, materials and detailing; and the site’s accessibility by major transport infrastructure.A report to Salford City Council’s planning committee noted that while the application site is strategically unallocated for employment purposes, it is nonetheless “ideally positioned within an existing, and well established, employment area denoted for its contribution to the local economy”.As such, the principle of such a scheme is considered “acceptable and should be supported”.Approval has been recommended.