ST. MODWEN SIGNALS THE BEGINNING OF THE £100 MILLION TRANSFORMATION OF LONG MARSTON

St. Modwen has signalled the beginning of the £100 million transformation of Long Marston in Warwickshire with the appointment of demolition contractor PM Harris.

Representing the first phase of the Long Marston Masterplan, a six month programme of demolition has now commenced, removing the former Ministry of Defence accommodation area on the site. These buildings, which have fallen into disrepair, will be stripped out internally before being mechanically demolished to prepare the site for future building work.

Peter Rudd, senior development surveyor for St. Modwen, said: “Ground clearance, site clean-up and remediation are key stages in the regeneration process, and at Long Marston we are now gearing up to prepare this area of the site for future development. As part of St. Modwen’s responsible approach to sustainable regeneration, over 90 per cent of the waste generated through the demolition process will be recycled for use elsewhere on site. When the six month programme is complete, St. Modwen will be in a prime position to progress the next stage of development.”

The 478-acre Long Marston Masterplan encompasses the creation of a leisure development featuring 150 self-catering lodges and 150 holiday homes, an outdoor activity centre, football and cricket pitches and a rail heritage centre. The Masterplan also includes a total of 500 new houses and secures 860,000 sq ft of existing employment space on site, safeguarding hundreds of jobs.

Marketing for the area of land earmarked for the leisure development is ongoing and is being carried out by the Stratford upon Avon office of property consultants Knight Frank.

Peter Rudd continued: “Given its location so close to Stratford upon Avon and the Cotswolds, we believe Long Marston is ideally located, and Knight Frank has the market knowledge and leisure contacts to capitalise on this. The site has enormous potential to boost the considerable tourism offering that already exists in Stratford upon Avon and the Cotswolds.”

St. Modwen acquired the 478 acre, former MoD army base site at Long Marston in 2004. Long earmarked for redevelopment, since 2006, St. Modwen has been consulting with the public and working closely with Stratford District Council to identify a suitable use for the site. The development will also retain and improve upon existing ecological habitats and landscaping.