Bournemouth Airport business park expansion will go ahead

Full planning permission has now been given for two business parks to be built north of the airport at Aviation Business Park.

While permission had already been given for most of the project in December 2021, it was agreed that construction could only begin if issues were settled over an access road, cycleways, and footpaths.

These included making changes to the spine road design linking the east and the west of the industrial estate.

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A total of 18 months on, BCP Councillors finally gave refined plans the go ahead at a planning committee meeting on Thursday, June 15.

CGI of the business park (Image: Stephen George and Partners LLP)

The two new business parks are set to include 85,100 sq m of employment floorspace and 10,000 sq m of employment building.

Industrial land with road improvements will cover 25 hectares and will see at least 60 per cent of the development used for storage or distribution, and the rest for business and general use.

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Applicants Imperial Park Bournemouth and Bournemouth Airport have said the expansion could potentially create 2,600 jobs and bring a £100 million benefit to the economy.

In a report submitted as part of the planning application, they described the benefits of the proposal as “significant and wide ranging”.

It said: “The strategic case for the proposed development at Aviation Business Park is clear cut and well-established in the area’s economic growth priorities.

CGI of the business park (Image: Stephen George and Partners LLP)

“As a location for commercial development, the site ranks amongst the top priorities for future development in the area as part of the BIG programme.

“It is already established as a key location, and new development will have a key contribution to make to raising its profile as an investment destination.

“Beyond its strengths as a strategic location for growth, the scale and type of development proposed for the site also demonstrates very strong alignment with local, regional and national growth priorities.”

Speaking to the Daily Echo in January, Steve Gill, managing director of Bournemouth Airport, said that work on the first unit has begun and is a “significant investment in its own right”.