Council has start date for construction of new sustainable business incubator units.
Council has start date for construction of new sustainable business incubator units.
Construction will begin on 1 November to build a new 2 storey business centre containing 29 small business incubator units at Churchfields Industrial Estate in Hollington. The new building will be known as Churchfields Business Centre.
The units will range from 315.6sqft to 323.8sqft in size, and can be used for office, light industry or high-tech.
The building will be built to a very high sustainable (BREEAM) standard and feature “Superfast” broadband; extensive energy efficiency measures; a “green” roof; solar PV; security features; electric vehicle charging points and be fully accessible; all with the aim of minimising tenant costs and promoting “greener” working.
The work, which is planned to be completed in late summer 2022, is to be undertaken by local construction company Westridge Construction Ltd and will be managed by sustainable building specialists Allen Construction Consultancy Limited.
Cllr Paul Barnett, lead councillor for Regeneration, said:
“It is great to see that we have an official start date for the construction of this exciting and sustainable new development.
“We are hoping that these incubator units will provide a great place for businesses, and especially green start-ups, to grow from. The units will be available on ‘easy in, easy out licences’, as we want to help small businesses thrive after such a difficult 18 months. So I would encourage anyone thinking of starting a new green business to get in touch now.
“As well as the new facilities a CHART (Connecting Hastings and Rother Together) funded programme will provide training and networking support in the new centre for all local businesses.
“Tackling climate change is a major priority for the council, so it’s incredibly important to us that these units are being built so sustainably and will continue to be sustainable in their usage too.”
The project has been developed with funding and support from the South East Local Enterprise Partnership; partly funded by European Structural and Investment Funds via the Connecting Hastings and Rother Together (CHART) programme; and the council’s own Capital Programme and the recently announced Town Fund Programme (subject to business case approval).
