Latest news with #EbbsfleetDevelopmentCorporation
Daily Mirror
01-06-2025
- Business
- Daily Mirror
UK's newest £3.9bn garden city with 15k homes changing unused land forever
Huge plans, costing almost £4billion, to totally revamp 2,500 acres of brownfield land into a vibrant green city first started in 2015 - and is set to be completely finished in the next 10 years Ambitious plans to transform unused land into a bustling green city are slated to be fully finished in the next decade. Following soaring demand for more houses in the popular commuter county of Kent, the idea of Ebbsfleet Garden City was born back in 2015. Spearheaded by the Government and Ebbsfleet Development Corporation, and costing almost £4 billion, the investment aims to create the first garden city in 100 years across 2,500 acres of brownfield land. By 2035, Ebbsfleet will feature a staggering 15,000 new homes and 40 per cent 'green and blue space' with 50 new parks and open spaces - while creating 32,000 jobs for residents. By then, the mostly flattened area will become a place for Brits to 'grow a family, build a business, socialise, and enjoy a unique city-country lifestyle on the edge of London and Kent'. There are three major projects of the Ebbsfleet Garden City: Ebsfleet Central, Northfleet Embankment, and Community buildings and spaces. According to the developer's website, Ebbsfleet Garden City comprises an urban regeneration area made up of a collection of brownfield development sites within Dartford and Gravesham Boroughs. The planning application for this project is due to be submitted later this year. "Ebbsfleet Central will be the dynamic commercial centre for Ebbsfleet and the surrounds, anchored by Ebbsfleet International railway station," developers explained. "Current car parking around the station will be relocated and the area transformed with modern new offices, city living apartments and places for people to enjoy arts and culture alongside fitness and wellbeing, all on the doorsteps of high-quality and sustainable neighbourhoods." Ebbsfleet Central, a mixed-use residential and commercial area, will feature around 2,100 homes (35 per cent of which are Affordable Housing) and up to 100,000 square metres of office floorspace - as well as 10,000 square metres of retail floor spaces for restaurants, bars, cafes, and supermarkets. Located just 17 minutes from Central London, it is hoped the revamped area will become a 'magnet for inclusive economic growth' and a 'destination of choice for investment and innovation'. In 2022, Ebbsfleet Development Corporation submitted the outline planning application for the first phase of new development in Ebbsfleet Central. This includes building new leisure facilities, a new school, and more open spaces for future residents. The mega project also involves building the Eastgate Community Building, a church and local community centre located in the middle of Springhead Park. "The building and various rooms is available to the public to host various groups, classes, events and initiatives," developers added. "As well as annual events such as Easter Egg hunts, Summer BBQs and Christmas Fairs, Eastgate is also a regular meeting space for Rainbows & Brownies, Zapa Performing Arts and runs a regular Parents & Tots group, as well as being used as a church space." Last year, Ebbsfleet Garden City announced 632 new homes were delivered in 2022/23 despite national challenges to the housing market. Since 2015, around 3,516 news have already been delivered in the region - including 195 Affordable Homes. As of 2024, 3.94 hectares of parks, open spaces and recreation areas, as well as 3.62km of dedicated footpaths and cycle ways - and £172.9 million in private sector investment had been delivered.
The Independent
14-03-2025
- General
- The Independent
Fact check: Part of a new town in Kent was impacted by a spider's habitat
In a speech on Thursday, March 13, Sir Keir Starmer said 'an entire new town' had been stopped by spiders. Sir Keir said: 'Jumping spiders stopping an entire new town – and I've not made that example up – that's where we've got to.' Evaluation Sir Keir was likely referring to Ebbsfleet Garden City. But only part of that project has been impacted by its designation as a site of special scientific interest – which was in part because of a critically endangered spider. Although he did not mention it by name, it appears the Prime Minister was referring to a development in Kent known as Ebbsfleet Garden City – where 15,000 new homes are planned to be built. This scheme was recently featured in the national press with reports stating that part of a new town project had been obstructed by a Natural England decision to designate an area of Kent as a 'site of special scientific interest' (SSSI). These reports refer to Natural England's 2021 decision to make Swanscombe Peninsula an SSSI. The site spans an area which includes part of Ebbsfleet Valley – which is where the garden city is being built. The area is one of only two places in the UK that are home to a critically endangered spider called the distinguished jumping spider. The spider was among the reasons that Natural England gave for designating the SSSI. But the SSSI decision does not affect the entire Ebbsfleet Garden City site. The impacted area is the part called 'Ebbsfleet Central West', and an update from the board in July 2024 said the master planning of Ebbsfleet Central West 'is progressing well with strategic input from Natural England'. The company behind the development says: 'The ambition for Ebbsfleet Central West will seek to deliver an ambitious residential development whilst ensuring we protect, conserve and support local wildlife and nature.' Work is also still progressing on other parts of the Ebbsfleet Garden City project, including Ebbsfleet Central East which was last year granted outline planning consent. By last July around 4,000 homes had been completed as part of the garden city project. In 2023, the Ebbsfleet Development Corporation said it has 'adjusted the plans' to take account of the SSSI and 'concluded that the vision for the centre can still be achieved'. It added that its planning 'has shown that the overall quantum of development at Ebbsfleet Central will still be significant and will deliver the vision for the 'heart of Ebbsfleet''.
Yahoo
15-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Colony of endangered spiders halts Government's plans for 1,300 new homes
A small colony of endangered spiders has halted the development of more than a thousand new homes in a blow to the Government's growth plans. Plans to build hundreds of new houses and flats in Ebbsfleet in Kent have been abandoned after Natural England designated part of the Government-approved location - a filled-in quarry and the cleared site of a former cement works next to a railway station - as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). The designation was necessary to protect a colony of rare 'distinguished jumping spiders' from developers, Natural England said, even though doing so obstructed part of a £300 million Government-backed plan to build a new town. Ian Piper, chief executive of the Government-backed Ebbsfleet Development Corporation (EDC), confirmed the environmental order would affect plans for homes saying an estimated 1,300 properties slated for development would be lost. It will be seen as a blow to Rachel Reeves and the Labour government which has put house building at the heart of its plans to boost growth and kickstart the economy. The Chancellor announced a major change to planning rules in January, saying she would strip green quangos of their powers to block building, saying they have wielded an 'oversized say on the future of our economy'. Her comments were echoed by Angela Rayner, the deputy prime minister, who said this week, as she unveiled plans to slash red tape in the planning system: 'We're tackling the housing crisis head-on – for everyone who needs a safe home.' Steve Norris, the Conservative former transport minister, who until last year chaired a company that tried to build a £2.5 billion theme park in the area in parallel with the planned Ebbsfleet Garden City, described the SSSI situation as 'ludicrous'. 'All I can tell you is that until Angela Rayner, to her credit, grasped the great crested newt, bats and jumping spider issue, a development corporation established by the Government for the express purpose of delivering much-needed housing was prevented - by an agency set up by that same Government - from delivering those homes, for reasons which it had no obligation to justify,' said Mr Norris. 'In any other democratic country that ludicrous situation would never have been allowed to persist'. He added the Ebbsfleet situation was 'one of the clearest examples of just how awful we are at delivering big infrastructure - and, in the process, deterring private capital from funding big investments.' With house prices in Ebbsfleet averaging about £400,000, according to property website Rightmove, protecting the spiders has potentially blocked more than £500 million worth of economic activity from property sales alone. Derelict land just south of the River Thames was bought for £32 million by the Government-sponsored Ebbsfleet Development Agency in 2019, paving the way for the construction of 15,000 new homes. The 125-hectare site, which stretches from the banks of the Thames down to a railway junction some 20 miles east of London, includes a filled-in quarry and the former site of a cement works. It sits directly next to Ebbsfleet Station, from where high-speed trains reach the capital in just 18 minutes. Mr Piper, the EDC boss, insisted that the SSSI had 'not affected delivery of the majority of new homes' at Ebbsfleet, but conceded that the designation had blocked construction on a parcel of land known as Ebbsfleet Central West, immediately next to the railway station. Development of SSSIs is effectively impossible because of draconian controls placed on construction, sources familiar with planning permission law said. Natural England and the Government were approached for comment. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Telegraph
15-02-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
Colony of endangered spiders halts Government's plans for 1,300 new homes
A small colony of endangered spiders has halted the development of more than a thousand new homes in a blow to the Government's growth plans. Plans to build hundreds of new houses and flats in Ebbsfleet in Kent have been abandoned after Natural England designated part of the Government-approved location - a filled-in quarry and the cleared site of a former cement works next to a railway station - as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). The designation was necessary to protect a colony of rare 'distinguished jumping spiders' from developers, Natural England said, even though doing so obstructed part of a £300 million Government-backed plan to build a new town. Ian Piper, chief executive of the Government-backed Ebbsfleet Development Corporation (EDC), confirmed the environmental order would affect plans for homes saying an estimated 1,300 properties slated for development would be lost. It will be seen as a blow to Rachel Reeves and the Labour government which has put house building at the heart of its plans to boost growth and kickstart the economy. The Chancellor announced a major change to planning rules in January, saying she would strip green quangos of their powers to block building, saying they have wielded an 'oversized say on the future of our economy'. Her comments were echoed by Angela Rayner, the deputy prime minister, who said this week, as she unveiled plans to slash red tape in the planning system: 'We're tackling the housing crisis head-on – for everyone who needs a safe home.' 'Ludicrous situation' Steve Norris, the Conservative former transport minister, who until last year chaired a company that tried to build a £2.5 billion theme park in the area in parallel with the planned Ebbsfleet Garden City, described the SSSI situation as 'ludicrous'. 'All I can tell you is that until Angela Rayner, to her credit, grasped the great crested newt, bats and jumping spider issue, a development corporation established by the Government for the express purpose of delivering much-needed housing was prevented - by an agency set up by that same Government - from delivering those homes, for reasons which it had no obligation to justify,' said Mr Norris. 'In any other democratic country that ludicrous situation would never have been allowed to persist'. He added the Ebbsfleet situation was 'one of the clearest examples of just how awful we are at delivering big infrastructure - and, in the process, deterring private capital from funding big investments.' With house prices in Ebbsfleet averaging about £400,000, according to property website Rightmove, protecting the spiders has potentially blocked more than £500 million worth of economic activity from property sales alone. Derelict land just south of the River Thames was bought for £32 million by the Government-sponsored Ebbsfleet Development Agency in 2019, paving the way for the construction of 15,000 new homes. The 125-hectare site, which stretches from the banks of the Thames down to a railway junction some 20 miles east of London, includes a filled-in quarry and the former site of a cement works. It sits directly next to Ebbsfleet Station, from where high-speed trains reach the capital in just 18 minutes. Mr Piper, the EDC boss, insisted that the SSSI had 'not affected delivery of the majority of new homes' at Ebbsfleet, but conceded that the designation had blocked construction on a parcel of land known as Ebbsfleet Central West, immediately next to the railway station. Development of SSSIs is effectively impossible because of draconian controls placed on construction, sources familiar with planning permission law said.
