Around 500 permanent jobs will be created by the development with the potential to create up to 1,000 jobs in the adjacent allocated site for business. In addition construction will see 250 direct and indirect jobs maintained in house building over the next decade.
The 48 ha mixed use scheme, promoted by Wallace Land, is situated on Blackness Road. It will serve to meet the current and future needs for homes and employment in Linlithgow as well as recognising the need for fresh investment into the town. In addition it will deliver the current Local Plan infrastructure commitments for the slip roads onto the M9 at Junction 3, further opening up employment opportunities.
A £200,000 Linlithgow Town Centre Benefit Fund will be made available for town centre improvements, and town centre retailers are also set to benefit from an additional £5.7m in retail expenditure by 2019.
Over the life of the development it is estimated that there would be direct investment of over £90m in the delivery of the scheme, including essential infrastructure provision, site preparation works, and construction and building works.
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The development will see:
· The up-front delivery of west facing slips roads onto the M9 at Junction 3
· Construction of up to 600 much-needed homes, of which 25% (150) will be for affordable housing
· A new Neighbourhood Centre anchored by a medium sized foodstore with a petrol filling station, as well as a long stay car park for visitors and town centre workers.
· A hotel with conferencing facilities
· A 60-bed residential care home
· A green space network including a community park and land for sports and leisure uses
· Delivery of community facilities
· A site for the potential relocation of the Health Centre
· Town centre bus provision extended to the new development and spaces provided for tourist coach layovers adjacent to the new hotel.
· The opportunity to service the existing business park through provision of access and facilities.
Commenting on the lodging of the planning application, Jason Wallace of Wallace Land said:
"We are delighted to be in a position to be lodging a planning application for this exciting £90 million mixed use development. As well as delivering the slips onto the M9, which will reduce town centre congestion, we are delivering a comprehensive project that will benefit Linlithgow considerably and provide a much needed boost to the town.
"We have undertaken considerable community engagement on this project and have already made significant adjustments to our proposals based on the outcomes from this. The development is a win-win for Linlithgow and we would like to thank the community for their considerable input to this process and look forward to continuing the dialogue with them."
Should the development receive Planning Permission in Principle in 2012 it is expected that construction, including the slips, would commence in late 2013/early 2014.
(GK)
