PLANS are still on the table for another business and employment park in Annan.
Annandale and Eskdale Area Committee was this week given an update on the situation with regards the site off Stapleton Road.
Developing it is part of the Borderlands Infrastructure Programme and £8.9 million has been allocated for it and two other sites in Castle Douglas and Newton Stewart.
The scheme has been on the cards since 2020 when early engagement took place between the landowner and the agent and technical feasibility work was carried out.
However, voluntary acquisition negotiations with the sites’ owners has been slow to develop and was hampered by covid, according to officials.
They are now trying to get an accurate valuation of the site, which is opposite Annan Business Park, to move matters forward.
Meanwhile, in June, formal permission was given to officers to pursue Compulsory Purchase Orders (CPO) of all three sites, alongside voluntary negotiations.
A report for this week’s area committee said: “As part of the renewed correspondence the site agent for Annan has relayed to the council that the owner is amenable to the sale of the land but an agreeable price is still to be negotiated.
“Once the updated valuations have been provided to the council further negotiations can take place with the landowners and their agents with a view to acquiring the sites.”
Results of a feasibility study into developing the Annan plot in two phases have also been shared with councillors.
It identified several technical areas that would need to be considered, including the existence of overhead high voltage transmission cables, public utilities and the need for a surface water drainage solution.
Summing up, Stuart McMillan, the council’s strategic economic investment manager, said: “The development of the site is seen as complementary to the neighbouring Annan Business Park which hosts a range of national as well as local businesses.
“The intention for the site is largely shared with that of the Annan Business Park whereby it will provide and support a portfolio of good quality business land that is efficient to develop having had the infrastructure built by the council and will promote economic development and competitiveness in an appropriate location with good transport connectivity.”
It is hoped that a meeting with the landowner and their agent can take place before Christmas.
