Ryder Cup City moves forward to 2020 vision
The £2 billion regeneration of Newport and its 2020 Vision for the future moves forward as the city prepares to host next year’s Ryder Cup at the Celtic Manor Resort. Despite the recent announcement that the Friars Walk retail scheme has been a victim of the credit crunch, numerous other projects are well under way.
The 2020 Vision for Wales’s gateway city includes 150 regeneration projects, £2 billion of investment, two million sq ft of new office space, 11,000 new homes, 825 acres of derelict land reclaimed and still one million sq ft of refurbished retail space.
Today this vision is becoming a reality, with developments across all sectors on site and rapidly transforming the city’s appearance. Between now and next year’s Ryder Cup around £100 million of regeneration projects are due for completion bringing new jobs and more opportunities for investment.
John Burrows, chief executive of Newport Unlimited, said:
"'This is a very exciting time for Newport. With four tower cranes at work in the heart of the City and numerous building projects underway around the city centre and inner areas it is clear that regeneration in Newport is moving forward despite global market difficulties affecting the Friars Walk scheme.
"The regeneration programme promoted and funded by the Welsh Assembly Government, Newport City Council, and the private sector is continuing from strength to strength with projects to increase the number of new jobs, new homes, new environmental improvements, and new education and cultural facilities to stimulate vibrancy, interest and investment in the City."
Councillor Matthew Evans, leader of Newport city council, said:
"The huge scale and diversity of the projects on site in Newport is testament to the enormous potential that the city has. There will be few locations in the UK with such an active and ongoing regeneration programme, particularly during the current economic climate.
"The confidence that businesses and investors have in the city can be seen by the size and scope of the developments we have on site as we focus on turning the 2020 Vision for Newport into a reality."
Despite the current economic downturn, major regeneration projects are underway, including new housing schemes, a new £35m university campus in the city centre and new retail and business developments.
Talks are commencing to replace the Friars Walk retail development, with many other projects on site and nearing completion, or due to start imminently.
In the city centre the new university campus and 1050 space Kingsway car park are on site and making excellent progress. The car park is due to open later this year and will complement the refurbished Kingsway Shopping Centre.
Major progress is being made on the key strategic projects, with public consultation underway on plans to transform the Crindau Gateway to the north of the city including proposals for a new canal basin and marina.
St Modwen, who are developing land on the former Llanwern steelworks, are due on site next year for the first phase of their 4000 home development. The project will see the regeneration of one of Wales’s largest and symbolic brownfield sites, given the devastating job losses at the steelworks just eight years ago.
The first phases of both the City Vizion and Newhaus developments have been built while other housing schemes which will provide in-demand affordable housing around Old Town Dock are due on site this year. On the east side of the River Usk around 500 new properties will have been completed by the end of the year.
Around George Street, the flagship £8.4m Orb office development is complete and its glazed, curved design has created an attractive new city landmark as people approach the city centre from the south. The speculative development will soon have its first tenants, Newport City Homes, who themselves will be creating hundreds of new jobs and investment opportunities for the city.
Network Rail’s £25m redevelopment of the railway station is also due on site shortly, with its plans for an attractive new building and concourse at a key gateway into the city.
In retail, two major new supermarkets are planned with Asda building their new store on the former cattle market site while Tesco are planning to replace their existing premises with a significantly expanded new store on the Newport Retail Park in Spytty.
A new gas-powered power station is being built in Uskmouth, while the former LG site to the west of the city is set to house two new developments, with a £1 million WH Smith distribution centre and a data centre planned for the site.
The city’s historic docks are attracting ‘green industry’ investors with several high profile multi-million pound projects offering new opportunities for the area.
Newport docks is already home to the Sims recycling plant – a world leader for recycling waste electrical goods. This year three renewable energy plants in the docks area have been proposed, with the potential to bring significant investment in a sector predicted to dominate future industrial developments.
Newport City Council is driving forward its own major capital programme, including a £21 million investment in the city’s highways infrastructure – the largest of its kind in Wales.
The council is also committed to a major secondary schools redevelopment programme. The first stage of this, a new £28 million secondary school for Bettws is due to open later this year.
Ends
Wales’ Largest Eco Housing Development gets Thumbs-Up from Minister
09/12/09
The largest sustainable new housing development in Wales received the official seal of approval from the Deputy Housing Minister, Jocelyn Davies, when she visited the site in Newport.
The groundbreaking development, which will see 101 new affordable homes developed on the city’s regenerated waterfront, is being built to level five of the Code for Sustainable Homes (CSH). This will be the largest of its kind in Wales and one of only a handful to achieve a level five rating across the UK.
The development, which has been named Mariners Quay, is located in the Old Town Dock area of Newport and will feature one and two bedroom apartments and two, three and four bedroom houses.
Constructed by Leadbitter Group for local not-for-profit organisation, Seren Group, Mariners Quay is the result of a successful partnership with Newport Unlimited, Newport City Council and the Welsh Assembly Government to provide affordable, high quality, sustainable accommodation in the city. In total around 1500 new properties will be built in the Old Town Dock area, with the 101 being built for the Seren Group being allocated as affordable housing.
This is part of the Welsh Assembly Government’s strategy to increase the supply of affordable homes in Wales, with funding being provided to help meet the target of 6,500 additional affordable homes in Wales by 2011.
As the largest sustainable development at code level five in Wales, a significant proportion of the energy required to power the homes will be produced on site. The Code has been adopted by the Welsh Assembly Government as the preferred tool to assess how sustainable development is being implemented in new homes in Wales and ranges from levels one to six. The Code looks at factors such as energy and CO2, water, waste and pollution.
When complete, properties at the development will benefit from substantially reduced energy bills, which could be as low as £2 per week per household. This is partly thanks to an on-site energy centre, which includes a biomass boiler that burns woodchip fuel and will produce much of the power required for the development, and rainwater harvesting technology.
Bob Hutchings, Chair of Seren Group, said: "The Mariners Quay development is a really ambitious and high-profile project for us. We are committed to developing a sustainable community within Old Town Dock that will provide social and economic benefits to those that live both within the development and in the surrounding areas."
Says Bob Rendell, Chief Executive of the Leadbitter Group: "Leadbitter is proud to be building this extremely important development on behalf of the Seren Group. We are committed to engaging with and supporting the communities within which we work and are therefore delighted to be helping the Seren Group fulfil its vision of developing low cost, energy efficient housing that will contribute towards creating a sustainable modern community in the heart of Newport’s heritage regeneration area."
Once built, the properties at Mariners Quay will be available on a tenure neutral basis. This means that the homes will both be available to rent through Seren’s housing arm, Charter Housing, and to buy through the shared equity scheme operated by their development arm Fairlake. Whether the resident chooses to buy or rent is dependent on their individual circumstances.
This builds on the cutting edge work Seren Group and Newport City Council have undertaken to implement the Assembly’s vision of neutral tenure in Wales.
Deputy Minister for Housing, Jocelyn Davies, said: "When we look at a scheme like Mariners Quay, it’s clear how much more we can achieve by working together rather than on our own. While we recognise the traditions that made Newport what it is today, the city is being transformed, and it’s Mariners Quay’s future residents who will really see the benefits of the transformation, which is supported by the Welsh Assembly Government. I look forward to coming back when the development is complete, to meet the first tenants as they move in."
Bob Hutchings continues: "With Mariners Quay we are striving to create a community in which people will want to stay and in turn help develop a much more sustainable housing market in Newport. The ultimate aim is to give people real choice over whether they rent or own their home."
All the properties at Mariners Quay are built to the Lifetime Homes standard and will be around 15% larger than those available on the private market.
