Omega masterplan under threat

THE masterplan for the £1 billion Omega development, which promises up to 24,000 new jobs at Warrington over the next 25 years, looks set to be largely torn up.
A £7 million funding shortfall has been identified – and the Warrington-based North West Development Agency says it will not plug the gap with public money.
The NWDA board has told development partners Miller Developments, the Royal Bank of Scotland and Warrington Borough Council it would be more appropriate for support to potentially protect the site to come from a private investor.
More than £35 million of public money has already been spent on the Omega scheme since it was first conceived some 21 years ago.
But although a new motorway junction has been built on the M62 to cater for the site, not a single building has been erected.
The 550-acre site straddles the motorway and occupies much of the site of the former Burtonwood airbase.
NWDA chief executive Steven Broomhead said: “Given changes in the market, the original masterplan for Omega’s office development should be reconsidered, and we are urging Warrington Council, Miller and the Royal Bank of Scotland to sit down with us and reconsider. We hope to have a meeting soon.
“The original masterplan may not be the way forward, and other office development sites have come forward since the masterplan was agreed in 2002. The strategic rationale for Omega is not in 2008 what it was in 2002.”
However, the NWDA remains committed to the scheme and it likely the first two phases will go ahead as planned.
Mr Broomhead is personally committed to what he sees as one of the major employment opportunities in the North West.
He said: “We are not walking away from this. We have already put £1 million into it. We simply want to look at the masterplan again because the market has changed enormously since 2002.”
Miller says there is considerable interest in the site and still expect the first occupiers to be trading before the end of next year.
The company says it has always been understood that long-term proposals would have to be flexible and might have to amended.
All the partners agree that it is too early to say how the masterplan will eventually end up.
The original Omega plan would provide 7.1m sq ft of offices, manufacturing, technology and distribution space alongside leisure, retail, hotel and conference facilities. Another 12,000 jobs would be created over the next 10 years, with another 12,000 following as the development was completed. A further 7,000 jobs could be created indirectly in construction and engineering.