Times News

Melksham welcomes plan to boost business

2:10pm Sunday 29th January 2012

an additional 2,000 homes could be built in the Melksham area by 2026, with 1,930 of those to go in the town itself.

Other priorities include regenerating the town centre for retail and improving employment areas – with the Bowerhill Industrial Estate picked out in particular.

The draft report states that “key community services and facilities should be located within, or well related to, the town centre to help promote and deliver the requisite regeneration”, vindicating a campaign to prevent the Melksham community ‘campus’ of council services from being moved out of town. The planned Melksham link of the Wilts & Berks Canal is also mentioned as an opportunity for the town, and a need to improve public transport links is identified.

Graham Ellis, president of the Melksham Chamber of Commerce, said: “One of the interesting things from a chamber of commerce viewpoint is certainly improving things for businesses in Bowerhill – that’s not a bad thing at all.

“We’re fully supportive of improving the town centre and there are some tremendously good things in the strategy, as far as it goes.

“There’s no new land in the Melksham area for extra business. If you’re adding 2,000 homes, which will equate to roughly 2,500 employable people, you may potentially end up creating a sink effect.”

Mr Ellis said he felt better public transport links to and from the town were essential to help cope with the planned growth.

Steve Petty, Wiltshire councillor for Melksham Central, said: “The homes part is really in progress with the Snowberry Lane development. I welcome the rest – investment in Melksham is important, as we seem to be suffering all the time.

“Employment has to come with the homes, we don’t really want to generate more commuting if we can help it.”

Cllr Petty also believes the planned Melksham town centre campus would be a key part of the town’s future.

He said: “The campus will definitely be important. It’s a matter of making sure they do it right.”

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