Councillors in Inverclyde have approved the spending of over £4m in public money to improve roads as part of the regeneration of the Inverkip power station site.
Plans were developed in 2014 for 650 homes and commercial space for the site close to Wemyss Bay, with the power mothballed in the late 1990s and decommissioned in 2006.
Demolition began in 2010 and was completed three years later.
Under the original plans, the site's private sector owners Scottish Power would have paid for a new £4.15 million road improvement plan for Inverkip.
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However, in late 2023, the council’s environment and regeneration committee and City Deal Cabinet approved a change of plan which meant the project delivery responsibility transferred to the local authority.
External funding of £3.58m will be provided by the UK Government and the Scottish Government, with Inverclyde Council to contribute the remaining £570,000.
The council said it hopes the project will "unlock follow-on economic investment in the village through the development of the vacant Inverkip power station".
It's claimed the project could ultimately provide 400 construction jobs and 120 jobs in follow-on development, £28m construction gross value added (GVA) impact, £4m annual ongoing operational gross value-added impact for Inverclyde and £6m for City Region.
The new plans will now be put to the City Deal Cabinet for approval and, if successful, the proposed construction work is due to commence in late 2024/25 and be completed by autumn 25/26.
Councillor Michael McCormick, Inverclyde Council’s convener of environment and regeneration, said: “This is an important milestone in the delivery of the Inverkip City Deal project and I’m pleased fellow councillors backed these updated proposals to allow officers to proceed to the next stage and move a step closer to starting work and delivering positive change for the village, Inverclyde and the wider city region.
“We have already successfully delivered two of the three Inverclyde City Deal projects with the stunning new £20m Greenock Ocean Terminal and the £11m Inchgreen Marine Park.
“We are now edging closer to realising the Inverkip development which would help unlock major investment in the former Inverkip power station site and deliver hundreds of new homes.
“We are determined to deliver these important improvements and this is an exciting step forward.”
The plans will see a signalised junction Main Street (North) on A78, a signalised junction Harbourside (Kip Marina) on A78, the formation of a T-junction at Brueacre on the A78 enabling new access to the former Inverkip Power Station site involving partial widening and local re-alignment of the A78 carriageway to tie into the proposed bellmouth site access.
The 100-acre site will also include extensive open spaces, including a public park with foot and cycle path.
Along the full length of the Firth of Clyde boundary, a linear coastal park will be created to provide further space for active recreational activities.
There will be a number of housing options, ranging from two bedroom to five bedroom.
The main change is to the Brueacre Junction, with a T- junction now being proposed rather than a roundabout. This follows further design development and transport modelling around future capacities for the village.
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