Hull City Council and local development company Stoneferry Estates have a partnership agreement to create a £25 million business park on the former Hull Maternity Hospital site. The development is expected to create around 500 jobs.
Hull city centre
The park, called Kingston Parklands, will be focused on the renewable energy sector and will support the Humber region’s recognition as the Energy Estuary.
The phased development of the 11 acre site will provide accommodation, development and research facilities as well as high tech storehouses with solar roofs.
The first stage will include a 42,000 sq ft feature building fronting Hedon Road which will offer flexible space to let to businesses.
Stephen Brady, leader of Hull City Council, said: “The Council is delighted to be partnering with Stoneferry Estates who are a locally based and highly regarded development company. This can only be good news for local contractors and local suppliers who can become involved in the project.”
Once fully developed, Kingston Parklands is set to breathe new life into the former maternity hospital site for which the Council obtained Enterprise Zone status to offer special support to help the growing renewables sector, including business rate relief.
Councillor Martin Mancey, portfolio holder for economic regeneration at Hull City Council, said: “This is a hugely important piece of the City Plan as Kingston Parklands will support business growth and job creation, especially within the renewables sector.”
Paul Dixon, a director at Stoneferry Estates, said the company was committed to encouraging leading, world class businesses and workers to the development to help deliver Hull’s City Plan vision of becoming a leading name in renewable energy.
“To secure the opportunity of the Kingston Parklands Site is another exciting phase in the growth of Stoneferry Estates Limited. We are a local company and all our investment portfolio is in Hull and East Riding.
“We take great pride in having been the providers of new facilities for a number of new businesses, together with local and national companies that are expanding,” he said.
Stoneferry Estates was chosen following national marketing for a development partner. The business will shortly be going out to tender for the first stage of the development. The company is also currently in the final stage of the redevelopment of the former Humbrol site in Hedon Road, another Enterprise Zone area, which is being transformed into the Marfleet Environmental Technology Park.
Mr Dixon said the new Kingston Parklands tender process would be open to local, regional and national contractors but that he was optimistic, due to previous experience of local businesses being the most competitive, that Hull contractors would come out on top again.
Leading market provider for professional management and engineering design services, Alan Wood & Partners, has been selected to manage the delivery of the impressive project.
Nick Ward, managing director of Alan Wood & Partners, said his company was “delighted to have been selected to lead the delivery of this amazing, iconic development for Hull.”
