Your Business With James Caan 2017 - 35
PROMOTION Junction 21 Enterprise Area Designed for life, built for business A longside the milestone achievement associated with FoodWorksSW, there continues to be healthy commercial activity and investment across the wider Junction 21 Enterprise Area (J21EA). J21EA comprises a number of well-connected development areas to the west of junction 21 on the M5. Some 20 miles south of Bristol and the M4/M5 interchange, J21EA capitalises on its clear strengths - good transport links, diverse enterprising economy, highly skilled and motivated talent pool and significant available land and existing premises. The sheer range of opportunity across J21EA presents unrivalled prospects to access markets develop supply chains across Bristol, Bath, the south-west, south Wales and the M5 corridor. It will deliver 9,000 new jobs and 6,000 homes by 2030. Planning permission has been granted for an 120-bed Holiday Inn Express at Weston Gateway Business Park, next to the Knightstone Housing HQ. This £12m investment should create 50 local jobs. Opening is planned for summer 2019 and should greatly improve the business and leisure accommodation for Weston and north Somerset. Units let On an adjacent plot, closer to Worle station, approval has been granted for a number of light-industrial business units. While modest in The Hive managed workspace An aerial shot of the Junction 21 Enterprise Area scope, the speculative nature of this development further demonstrates strength in north Somerset's business base and latent demand from local businesses looking for new premises. These 14 units will be suitable for workshops, light manufacturing and service industry businesses looking to be close to Worle and the M5. Elsewhere, negotiations continue with commercial schemes emerging, particularly at Weston Business Quarter close to FoodWorksSW, where seven light-industrial units around 3,000ft² each are currently proposed on Beaufighter Road. Across the Enterprise Area, the first half year has been busy. All available office space is now let at Locking Parklands to local companies Quantum Surveying and Mobility Furniture. At Weston Business Park close to Heywood Village, the Hive now has more than 90% taken - well ahead of projections. By the time you read this, all the light-industrial units on Warley's Lane, close to the Lidl distribution centre, will be let, the last one going to highways contractor DBI Services. F O R M O R E I N F O R M AT I O N Get in touch or keep up to date with J21EA-related investment and occupations news, please follow @21EA on Twitter. For more information on sites, news and progress, visit www.j21.co.uk