A sweeping 300-acre vision to transform land around Warrington Bank Quay station into a new neighbourhood with up to 4,500 homes and workspace for 10,000 people has been unveiled by the borough council. The masterplan, detailed on 22 May, sets out 2 million square feet of commercial floorspace on underused brownfield and former industrial land, marking the first speculative workspace development in the area for 15 years.
Council Leader Cllr Hans Mundry described it as representing “a once-in-a-generation opportunity to transform a vast area of underused brownfield land into a vibrant, sustainable new quarter for Warrington.” The blueprint was drawn up over 14 months by the Warrington Bank Quay Advisory Board, which brought together the council, the Department for Transport, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, the Department for Business and Trade, and Homes England, with masterplanning support from WSP and Aecom.
The scheme hinges on Warrington’s confirmed role as a central hub on the planned £45 billion Northern Powerhouse Rail line between Liverpool and Manchester. A new low-level station at Bank Quay would put both cities within roughly 15 minutes’ journey time. Steve Hunter, Director of Place at the council, presented the vision at the UK’s Real Estate Investment and Infrastructure Forum in Leeds, highlighting how the high-density housing would help relieve pressure to build on local green spaces. Housing targets are set to be shared across Cheshire and Warrington under the new devolved combined authority.
Full details of the proposals can be found on Warrington Borough Council’s website, while the government’s earlier confirmation of rail investment is available online. The council says the full realisation of the Bank Quay masterplan is conditional on delivery of Northern Powerhouse Rail, which would cement Warrington’s position at the heart of the North West’s economic corridor.
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