THE ‘GARDEN Village’ development on the former site of Long Marston Airfield could help drive significant economic growth say business leaders.
Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce visited the site which is expected to deliver 3,500 homes over the next two decades. The site will also include a 15-acre business park that will provide jobs, a food store, shops, and facilities such as a community hall, medical centre, and a primary and secondary school.
So far, work is well underway on the first 400 homes with the first residents expected to move in later this year.
A planning application has been submitted to Stratford District Council (SDC) for a further 124 homes and plans being worked on for a third phase of 500 homes.
The site is one of 14 across the country that are being developed under ‘garden village ’principles, which means they will be self-contained with all the facilities required by residents on-site.
SDC leader Tony Jefferson said the council was on track to formally submit proposals to Government later this year to merge with Warwick District Council, creating a ‘super council’ by 2024 covering a population of 300,000.
He said: “If you look at the West Midlands as a whole as ask where is the economic growth, you can safely say it’s in Solihull, Coventry, Stratford and Warwick, so putting the two districts together gives us a very strong engine for that growth.
“This is not just about finances, although that is not insignificant, it’s an opportunity to look at that bigger picture, and we’ve already started to look at a joint local plan which will have more focus on employment and industry than in our existing plan.
“What we have an ambition to do is to provide better quality and more effective services to our residents and businesses, who are important stakeholders in the transformation of local governance.”
Chamber board member Doug Squires said: “Both the redevelopment of LMA and the creation of a single district council for south Warwickshire are hugely significant so it was good to hear how both could benefit the region.
“The chamber has become a global brand that connects members at all levels with each other and policy makers, but it’s also important that we can continue to get businesses at local level out to hear about important developments that are happening like at Long Marston Airfield which has the support of the business community.”
