Former factory site could be used for 180 homes

A MAJOR housing and transport project could be coming to an old factory site that has been empty for over a decade in Maesteg, Bridgend.

Landowners have drawn up plans to build over 180 homes, a mix of shops, and a railway park & ride service at the former Ewenny Road Industrial Estate.

The council’s cabinet will discuss the plans for the regeneration of the site during a meeting on Tuesday, May 18.

The site consists of 19.7 acres of land, owned in part by Bridgend County Borough Council and in part by Pontardawe Coal & Metals Company Limited (PCMCL) – a subsidiary of owners Clowes Developments.

The council has owned 40% of the land since March 2010 and both parties have had the site cleared in preparation for development. They jointly submitted plans to build 125 homes and various restaurants on the land in 2013.

The plans were revised in 2016 but development failed to take place after the project was deemed not financially viable without extra funding support to cover the cost of infrastructure works on historic mines.

The council has since worked alongside PCMCL to try and map out how they can deliver the scheme and they’ve submitted a bid to the Welsh Government for £3.5 million from its Cardiff Capital Region Housing Viability Gap Fund.

Both parties have drawn up a new scheme for the site, which includes the following changes:

Increase the number of homes from 138 to 186, with 15% affordable housing;

Build transport interchange with a bus stop and a park & ride facility at
the far western end of the site, near the Ewenny Road railway
station;

Move the proposed enterprise hub to sit alongside the
transport interchange; and

Replace large-scale shops with smaller ones to avoid any possible impact on Maesteg town centre

A report by Janine Nightingale, the council’s corporate director for communities, reads:

“Despite the viability issues connected to the scheme the redevelopment of the site remains a strategic priority and officers have continued to work closely with the adjacent landowners.

“This work has most recently focused on producing a deliverable masterplan for an implementable mixed-use scheme and securing grant funding to bridge the viability gap.”

Legal work is also underway to enable the council to dispose of its interest in the land and acquire the site earmarked for the enterprise hub and park and ride facility.

Ms. Nightingale’s report reads:

“This acquisition would be based on the fair market value of the land. Whilst the terms of the proposal disposal and acquisition will be drafted over the coming months no agreement will be entered into until further cabinet and/or council approval has been granted and the grant funding has been secured.”