Stirlin Developments has announced the commencement of site preparation works at the 44-acre Leafbridge site in North Hykeham, following application approval from North Kesteven District Council (27 July 2018), moving this landmark commercial development a step closer to fruition.
Stirlin acquired the Leafbridge site in 2013 with outline planning consent granted in 2017 on 22 acres, offering up to 300,000 sq ft of employment space.
With close proximity to Hykeham station on the Lincoln to Nottingham rail line and easy access to a number of key road links including the A46 and A1, the site offers ample possibility for businesses to connect with customers across the UK as well as develop into a vibrant hub for the East Midlands business community and further afield.
Paul Wheatley, senior project manager at Stirlin Developments, said: “We are really excited to see the hard work we have put in over the last few years start to come to fruition as our Leafbridge project moves into the implementation phase. Our vision for Leafbridge is to create a new place of enterprise in the city to support Lincolnshire’s growing economy and there’s no doubt the site has that potential.
“The next stage of the works will now begin, and over the next 12 to 18 months we are going to see the park’s landscape transformed, building on its inherent natural beauty. Working with our partners we will be constructing a diverse range of buildings of astounding design that will help create a business community with a sense of pride of place.
“We’re currently in talks with a number of businesses interested in taking space on the site which, long-term will develop a community comprising of vibrant and innovative office and industrial users who value the opportunity to occupy modern premises within a green environment.”
Cllr Colin Davie, executive member for economy and place at Lincolnshire County Council, said: “This is an exciting project on a brownfield site that demonstrates not only Stirlin’s level of ambition, but Lincoln’s attractiveness to developers.
“Among its advantages, this site is ideally placed to benefit from the work carried out in North Hykeham by the county council’s Access Lincoln team, which has made it much easier for people to travel into the city in a cleaner, greener way. We expect to see work proceed at pace, adding to the ever-improving commercial and housing offer south of the city.”
Cllr Richard Wright at North Kesteven District Council added: “NKDC are delighted to see this site come forward for development. I do hope that the site development continues to support the LN6 area to prosper.”
The project will be delivered by a number of partners, many of which are local to the East Midlands, including John Roberts Architects, Globe Consulting, O’Boyle Civil Engineering, Steve Gilman Design, Lumax Engineering, Lucas Machinery, Aeroscape, Minster Surfacing, Delta-Simons and Pygott & Crone.
Jonathan Roberts, managing director at John Roberts Architects, said: “It’s a great opportunity to work as part of the team to deliver the vision of creating a better working environment by ‘nature’ at the heart of the development plans.”
Rob O’Boyle, director at O’Boyle Civil Engineering, said: “We’re very proud to be involved in this exciting project with Stirlin Developments. The Leafbridge development will add greatly to the regeneration of this area of the city, providing superb business facilities in a unique natural setting.”
The first six acres of the development is expected to be available for occupancy by the end of 2019, with the full site completed over multiple building phases.
