Council unveils plans for £8.5 million business incubator

PLANS for a new £8.5 million business incubator in Warrington town centre’s “Stadium Quarter” have been unveiled by the borough council.
The new 50,000sq ft. business incubator will occupy the site of the former Dallam Centre in Dallam Lane.
The site sits at the heart of Warrington Borough Council’s ambitious £190 million Stadium Quarter project.
It follows the declaration made in January that a £10 million University Technical College will also be funded and built on the Stadium Quarter site. When constructed the two developments which sit adjacent to each other.
The new Business Incubator will provide a contemporary, high-quality workplace specifically aimed at providing prestigious accommodation for start-up businesses.
The five storey state-of-the-art building will feature a café at ground floor level and offices and research and development facilities on the upper floors. Its contemporary look will be enhanced by high quality stone and glass elevations and feature a double-height glazed entrance lobby.
Funding has come from a £1.7 million European Regional Development Fund grant and £6.7 million investment from Warrington Borough Council’s capital programme.
It is expected that the facility will in itself create 11 new jobs and approximately the same number during the construction period. When the facility is operational in Summer, it could house up to 100 small businesses.
The Stadium Quarter project was announced by Warrington Borough Council in March 2013. The scheme will connect the bus interchange with the Warrington Wolves’ Halliwell Jones Stadium and create a new, vibrant mixed-use development comprising educational, business, leisure and housing uses.
A phased programme of development over the next decade will create up to 1,000 construction jobs and nearly 4000 new permanent jobs when fully completed in 2024.
Councillor Terry O’Neill, leader of Warrington Borough Council, (pictured left) said: “Warrington is recognised as the number one location outside of London for Business start- up companies and this new facility is being built in response to demand. It will provide a first class base in which new businesses can develop and grow.
Significantly by autumn of next year Stadium Quarter will be home to two top class facilities; the business incubator that will help new businesses grow and the University Technical College which will train and equip our young people in nuclear and engineering skills’.
Steve Park, (pictured right) managing director, Warrington & Co., Warrington’s partnership for driving economic growth added:”This is great news for Warrington and a great start for Stadium Quarter. The business incubator is exactly what start up businesses need. It will provide office and R & D space on flexible lets into which they can develop and expand. The business location too could not be better. Warrington & Co. will also work with the new tenants to ensure that their growth needs are met.
“Stadium Quarter is now underway. This is an exciting moment in the regeneration of Warrington town centre.”