National Grid and West Northamptonshire Development Corporation (WNDC) have announced that the gasholder site, located between St Peter’s Way and Towcester Road is a step closer to becoming part of the St Peter’s Waterside Development. The two organisations have a shared ambition to bring forward this site for development, and subject to contractual negotiations, it will form part of a major office scheme in the Northampton Waterside Enterprise Zone.

The gasholder is part of a larger site owned by National Grid which also includes a second gasholder located opposite the St James’s Retail Park on Towcester Road. WNDC and National Grid have been discussing the long term future of the site for a number of years and earlier this month National Grid submitted technical documents to Northampton Borough Council providing information on the site’s condition and plans for how the two gasholders could be dismantled.

Although the future use of the southern gasholder site is not yet known, the northern site has now been earmarked for employment use as part of the St Peter’s Waterside Development.

Peter Mawson, WNDC’s Chief Executive said: “St Peter’s Waterside is primed for redevelopment and is attracting strong interest from a range of investors. With the inclusion of the Northern Gasholder site, we have the opportunity for a high quality office development, capitalising on its central location, riverside setting and Enterprise Zone benefits.”

Scott Lewis, Joint Venture Manager for National Grid explained: “We will continue to work with WNDC to ensure that this site can be provided with a brighter future and look forward to working with the local community, Northampton Borough Council and WNDC as plans progress”.

Councillor David Mackintosh, Leader of Northampton Borough Council, said: “This is fantastic news and shows how our partnership work with a whole host of organisations is paying dividends. The removal of this gasholder will be a powerful demonstration of our drive to ensure the regeneration of Northampton town centre continues, allowing us to open up the entrance to the Enterprise Zone and bring forward the development of the new Innovation Centre.”

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