Ten years to turn abandoned rail sidings into one of Darlington’s most vital sites

Six plots of land, ranging from 1,667 sq m to 10,500 sq m, have been made ‘ready to build’ for developers and businesses.

Landscaping works on the wider Central Park site are nearing completion, including a number of sculptures designed by blacksmith and artist Graham Hopper.

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Central Park – a mix of housing, higher and further education facilities and business sites- is already home to CPI – an internationally recognised organisation focused on biologics and life sciences, including next generation vaccines and treatments – and Teesside University’s National Horizon’s Centre, a centre for excellence in the bioscience and healthcare sector.

The site is also supportive of small businesses, with SME incubators Business Central and Innovation Central proving popular.

Ian Williams, DBC chief executive; Cllr Jamie Bartch; Cllr Jonathan Dulston; Dave Winstanley, group director of services; Cllr Mike Renton and Mike Bowron, project manager, plant a tree in Central Park to mark the completion of preparatory works (Image: Press release)

The newly established six commercial plots will very shortly be ready for development having been cleared and landscaped. Each plot is served with access to appropriate services making them attractive to a range of potential investors and developers.

The site is connected to the new £100m+ Darlington Station redevelopment, which will see a new station and transport interchange providing Central Park with even better transport accessibility, both locally and to the East Coast Mainline, providing regional and national connectivity.

Councillor Jonathan Dulston, leader of Darlington Borough Council, said: “Central Park is a premium site in the heart of Darlington, right next door to the mainline station and close to the Brunswick site identified for the Government Economic Campus.

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“We’ve done the hard work in terms of preparing the plots for development – they are ‘ready to go’ for a developer or business looking for a new site, whether that’s offices, lab space or advanced manufacturing and technology units.

“Central Park has great transport links, access to a wide pool of employees and high profile neighbours who attract investment opportunities. We’re proud of the site that’s been developed, which shows once more the commitment we have to growing our economy.”

The Central Park development plots are being marketed by the council’s Invest in Darlington business development team at www.investindarlington.co.uk