Latest update on massive new West Midlands town with 10,000 homes and hopes of a 'car-free lifestyle'
A new industrial estate the M5 is being proposed as part of major plans for a new West Midlands town.
The development would deliver more than half of the employment land promised as part of plans for a new town near Worcester.
The industrial estate, near junction 7, will form part of Woodhall, one of several neighbourhoods that will make up the new town being built around Worcestershire Parkway.
The town, which will be called Wychavon, is expected to provide 5,000 homes and 50 hectares of employment land by 2041 and will eventually have some 10,000 homes.
New plans submitted to Wychavon District Council focus on a 29-hectare site near the motorway, and are for “a standalone industrial and logistics park”.
“The site presents a valuable opportunity to create local jobs while meeting the increasing demand for industrial and logistics facilities,” the plans state.
“Its strategic location and excellent connectivity make it a key element of the Worcestershire Parkway strategic growth area, contributing to the area’s overall development with a design approach that is informed by the surrounding landscape assets, ensuring the development integrates with its environment.”
As well as the industrial estate, the Woodhall neighbourhood is proposed to include up to 1,250 homes, a primary school, public open spaces and “local services”.
“Its character will be inspired by its agricultural roots, historic parkland, and a blend of ordered, geometric landscapes that preserve and frame panoramic views of Crookbarrow Hill.”
Importance is also placed on connecting each neighbourhood to the new town centre and to Worcestershire Parkway railway station.
The station will eventually form part of a transport hub designed to give future residents “the choice to live a sustainable car-free lifestyle”.
Parkway is among the sites allocated for housing and employment in the South Worcestershire Development Plan Review, a planning blueprint that has this week gone out for public consultation.
Government inspectors have made changes to the plan, including removing Throckmorton as an allocated site, and now residents are being asked to have their say.
The public consultation started on Tuesday, January 6 and runs until 5pm on Tuesday, February 17. It’s available online at www.swdevelopmentplan.org/