Mayor Welcomes £10Million Investment In Local Projects

A total of £10million had been paid out this month on four exciting projects, including a major infrastructure project in Redcar that will benefit the South Tees Development Corporation.

Welcoming the news, Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen said: “It is all well and good for us to announce projects but what I have been pushing for is to start delivering them. These four schemes are fantastic and local people will soon see some tangible change across the region.”

A sum of £1.7million has been awarded to the Development Corporation for preparation work and to redevelop a roundabout to unlock the South Bank portion of the area.

The improvements will greatly enhance the access to the wharf, attracting inward investment to the development.

With this funding in place, spades could be in the ground for the work in early spring.

The largest amount, £3.2million, is the first instalment of a total of £17.5million funding for the National Horizons Centre.

Led by Teesside University and based at Central Park in Darlington, the centre is designed to support growth of the bioscience sector in the region and across the UK.

The Combined Authority funding will assist the centre in its goal to provide specialist education and training and promote innovation and research in biologics, health and digital health technologies.

Hartlepool Innovation and Skills Quarter has also received £2.9million to support the transformation of the old Post Office on Whitby Street into workspace units and aid in the regeneration of the surrounding area.

The bold revitalisation programme around Cleveland College of Art and Design’s new campus aims to strengthen links between the town centre and the waterfront, with modern business units to attract creative industries businesses to the area.

Finally, in partnership with Darlington Council, the Combined Authority has invested £2.2million funding to the first phase of the Salters Lane Ingenium Park project.

The scheme will see an area of 40 hectares near Yarm Road developed to support the manufacturing, engineering and logistics and distribution centres.

In opening up further development sites in the area, the money will help increase the number of companies that could potentially be situated in the Park and therefore boost inward investment.

Mr Houchen added: “This funding shows the Combined Authority’s commitment to a variety of projects central to my Plan for Growth.

“These schemes represent brilliant opportunities for economic regeneration, employment and businesses in the region and will go far in strengthening Tees Valley’s position as a contender on the global market.”