Greater Brighton leaders have hailed the creation of a new industrial park as the first stage of a major £1 billion investment programme to transform Burgess Hill.
The Mid Sussex town is the largest single growth location in the City Region with work well underway to bring 5,000 new homes, schools, gigabit broadband, the region’s first science park as well as improvements to transport and digital infrastructure to the area.
One of the first phases of this £1 billion Burgess Hill Growth programme is the creation of The Hub, a 50,000 sq m industrial warehouse park which will become home to 2,000 jobs.
With work on the first unit – a new 4,000 sq m warehouse for global courier company DPD – nearing completion, Councillor Garry Wall, Chairman of Greater Brighton, was given a tour of the site by owners Glenbeigh Developments.
After seeing the work in person, Cllr Wall said he was confident that The Hub would be the first of a series of major schemes to come forward in the Burgess Hill area with the benefits being felt across the City Region.
Cllr Wall, who is also Leader of Mid Sussex District, said: “I want to thank the team at Glenbeigh for taking time to show us around what is a very impressive and highly-sustainable new development. In a matter of months, this prominent site has transformed into a high quality warehouse which will be operational in a matter of weeks.
“Developments like The Hub are crucial to the future of Greater Brighton as a whole. Individual towns cannot exist in their own smaller locality and it is only by working with our neighbouring partners that we can ensure shared prosperity.
“There is no doubt that this major investment in creating jobs and homes in Burgess Hill will bring benefits to Crawley in the north and Brighton, Worthing and Lewes to the south.
“We know Greater Brighton is a resilient area for employment, but projects like The Hub ensure that we can continue to provide the buildings and environment that businesses need to grow while providing good quality jobs to local people.”
Sat on a 15 hectare site, The Hub sits on a prominent site on the A2300 between the A23 and town centre.
Planning permission has been secured for seven main units, which will be 12 metres high and suitable for technology and warehouse companies. Further space will be created for start-up companies.
A direct energy supply to the site will be provided by a nearby solar farm, which Glenbeigh has secured approval for.
A range of transport improvements on the adjacent A2300, which includes a new bus stop, have also been finished
Colin Whelan, director at Glenbeigh Developments, said: “It was a pleasure to show Garry and the Greater Brighton team around The Hub. They were all impressed with the quality of the build, but also the transport and energy infrastructure we’ve got in place.
“We’re looking forward to getting started with phase two in the next coming months and bringing more employment to Burgess Hill and the wider Greater Brighton region.”
For more details visit www.thehubburgesshill.co.uk.