Vision unveiled to revitalise towns business heart

A masterplan showing how the council intends to breathe new life into the town’s central business heart will be considered by councillors next week (Tuesday 2 March).

Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council has unveiled its strategy for attracting much needed new investment into Basing View, the town’s 65-acre business park, and its vision for transforming the area into a 21st Century sustainable urban business park in the future.

The plan highlights the potential for Basing View to re-establish itself as a major regional business destination which will include new hotels, shops and leisure facilities to support the business park. The area near Eastrop roundabout could also be transformed into a new ‘Downtown’ area including a piazza along with the creation of an imposing pedestrian boulevard linking the town centre and Basing View.

The council needs to attract a high quality investment partner to make the vision a reality. The masterplan has been developed to highlight to potential regeneration specialists what the area can offer and its commercial potential.

To help kick-start regeneration, the council is already making an up-front investment in the area. A new pedestrian footpath connecting Basing View with the station area is nearing completion and improvements to the Churchill Way subway will start a programme of improvements to the landscape, public areas and access over the next two to three years.

In parallel the skyline of Basing View will change this spring as the council starts work to demolish two obsolete 10-storey office blocks which blight the area and prepare them for future development.

Cabinet Member for Finance and Property Cllr James Lewin said: “We need to be ready to benefit from improving economic conditions and be able to attract new occupiers by having suitable development partners in place otherwise investment will go elsewhere. Occupiers requiring new space will have other choices in the region if we are not in a position to deliver.

“The masterplan outlines a clear and credible vision for the regeneration of Basing View to play a vital role in the economic growth of the town and to complement the council’s wider plans for the town and borough.”
Once the masterplan and vision is approved by councillors, marketing the sites for development and looking for development partners to progress the area’s transformation into a high quality business park could start as early as this summer.