Chesterfield’s commercial property offering has been brought to the attention of national investors after the town’s Waterside development was announced as one of the UK’s largest Regeneration and Renewal projects in a prestigious list of major schemes issued for 2013.

The £340m development, has moved four places since 2012 to be ranked at number 47 in the top 100 list of the UK’s largest regeneration projects, published this week in the sectors leading publications, Planning Magazine,  and Regeneration & Renewal.

The 60-acre development is being led by Chesterfield-based company, Bolsterstone Group, working in partnership with Arnold Laver Group and Chesterfield Borough Council.

Peter Swallow, Managing Director of Bolsterstone Group and Chair of the town’s marketing campaign, Destination Chesterfield, is delighted with the project’s position in the list. He explained: “Acknowledgment of Chesterfield Waterside as a key regeneration project in the UK will bring it to the attention of national commercial property agents, and inward investors/employers looking to establish new locations, which will in turn bring new jobs and opportunities to the Town.”

The first commercial/employment phases of the mixed-use 10-year development project will feature office space located on the site of the former Trebor Bassett factory, adjacent to the railway station. Bolsterstone are currently in detailed negotiations with a number of potential occupiers, which should lead to a start on site in the coming months. In addition, negotiations in respect of the family housing element of the project, which is to be developed on the former Arnold Laver timber yard site, are also at an advanced stage.

He added: “Chesterfield Waterside’s first phase location, right beside the station and within walking distance of the town centre will, I believe, make it particularly attractive to technology and digital media companies. It’s an opportunity to attract these rapidly growing new business sectors to the town and create opportunities and jobs for the people who live and work here.”

Chesterfield Waterside forms part of the A61 Corridor Regeneration area, which has already delivered the independent four-star Casa Hotel, Tesco and the Pro-act stadium. The Waterside development is one of two projects by Bolsterstone Group to appear in the prestigious Top 100 list; the other being the £244m New Bolton Woods scheme in Bradford, which is listed at number 65.

Mr Swallow added: “The strong positioning of our schemes across the region highlights the achievement in maintaining project momentum at a time when some major regeneration projects across the UK have stalled.”

Chesterfield Waterside is  to welcome Communities and Local Government director general.  D2N2 – the Local Enterprise Partnership for Derby, Derbyshire, Nottingham and Nottinghamshire – is hosting a visit from Peter Schofield, the Director General of the Department for Communities and Local Government (CLG), on Friday, May 3.

CLG are one of the Departments that have provided resources for the Growing Places Fund (GPF) and Mr Schofield will be visiting to look at projects that are already, or could in the future be benefitting from the work of the D2N2 LEP.

D2N2 chairman Peter Richardson and chief executive David Ralph will show Mr Schofield the growth potential of business locations, and small and medium sized firms, in our region by touring projects and businesses in the area.

One stop on his tour will be the Chesterfield Waterside project, where they will meet withPeter Swallow, the developer of the site and chair of Destination Chesterfield, as well as representatives of Chesterfield Borough Council.

Chesterfield Waterside is an innovative and sustainable £340 million scheme and is currently the (47th) largest regeneration project in theUK, which will rise from the remains of the old Trebor factory and is a major mixed-use regeneration scheme located immediately adjacent to the town centre.

The site, which incorporates elements of the River Rother and Chesterfield Canal, and sits alongside the A61, will provide a thriving and successful new destination, including the creation of a new community with 1,500 modern houses and apartments, new employment opportunities, shops, cafes and bars around the new canal basin and public square.

David Ralph said: “We are building a relationship with Government and through our senior sponsors it is critical part of our Growth Plan. Therefore we welcome Peter Schofield to look around the area and hear about the work D2N2 is doing and proposing to grow the region’s economy.

“We are looking to take him to both Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire, including to the Chesterfield Waterside project, and I am sure this will be the start of a number of visits to our area. We will continue to help grow the region and we are working relentlessly towards doing that.”

Peter Swallow, Chair of Destination Chesterfield said, “We welcome this opportunity to work with D2N2LEP in hosting Peter Schofield’s visit to Chesterfield to discuss the importance of the Chesterfield Waterside project to the town, and the region, and how the Government’s ‘Growing Places’ funding scheme will be instrumental in bringing forward the first phase of development.”

Mike Hayden, head of regeneration at Chesterfield Borough Council, said: ‘We’re delighted to welcome such a senior government official toChesterfieldto see the great opportunities the town has to attract investment and create jobs and new homes.

“Chesterfield Waterside is set to transform the town and with the help of £750,000 from the Growing Places Fund awarded by the D2N2 Local Enterprise Partnership to support the infrastructure costs, we expect development to start by the end of 2013.”

Chesterfield Waterside and Markham Vale are in a Chesterfield bids for Regional Growth Funds backed by Sheffield City Region LEP.

The Sheffield City Region Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) is to support eight bids. All the proposals aim to create employment and drive economic growth within the Region.

The LEP invited submissions for both ‘Projects’ and ‘Programmes’ when bidding to the £1.4bn fund opened in April, the key difference being that programme bids had to demonstrate a clear over-arching investment strategy and sustainable benefits for a specific geographical area, rather than for individual sites.

The LEP is to provide endorsement for four eligible Project bids and play a co-ordinating role for the Programme bids within the City Region (detailed below).

In addition, the LEP itself put forward two dedicated programmes of funding in order to launch an Employment Growth Programme to help small and medium-sized businesses expand and grow, and a Tech Accelerator Programme for start up companies with high growth potential, and which centre on the use of digital technologies and drive a culture of collaboration in the City Region.

The Programmes would see co-ordinated support given to smaller companies with the greatest potential for rapid expansion so as to lever in funding and support for their growth plans.

James Newman, Chairman of the Sheffield City Region LEP, said: “We invited submissions which could demonstrate a significant contribution to the LEP’s objectives and priorities for the City Region and that, crucially, would contribute to economic growth and the creation of jobs and private sector investment.

“The LEP is delighted to offer its support to this clear and focussed group of project and programme submissions to the Regional Growth Fund, which we hope will meet with Government’s approval so as to lever investment into the City Region.”

The Project bids in Chesterfield being supported by the LEP are outlined below:

Chesterfield Waterside

This flagship regeneration project on the edge of Chesterfield town centre is bidding for £1.1m from the RGF, which would be used to bring forward the first phase of office development in Basin Square, the commercial heart of the wider £340m scheme.

Markham Vale

This scheme is bidding for £1.1m from the RGF to deliver the second phase of development on this key employment and industrial site at junction 29a of the M1. The £10m scheme would create office, industrial, manufacturing and warehouse space to support advanced manufacturing and medical technology sectors and the proposed Sheffield City Region Enterprise Zone, if approved by Government.