London mayor Boris Johnson has shortlisted a proposed upgrade of Hackney Wick station and the redevelopment of the Old Vinyl Factory in Hayes for a share of a £40m funding pot.
The London Enterprise Panel, which is chaired by Johnson, has earmarked £8.5m to upgrade Hackney Wick station by 2016, a proposal from the London Legacy Corporation. The Hackney Wick and Fish Island area, including iCITY and the new town centre around the station, is anticipated to deliver new and improved business space and up to 6,000 new homes.
The panel has also ringfenced £7.7m for Cathedral Group and Development Securities’s plans to transform part of the Old Vinyl Factory into a new Central Research Laboratory.
Another two projects, a Camden initiative to support entrepreneurs and a business-led recruitment agency, were also shortlisted.
A total of 32 projects bid for a share in the £40m second round of the Growing Places Fund, which also includes a £25m allocation for a finance scheme for small and medium-sized businesses. A number of projects including support for Film London, apprenticeships, and an exports programme have already been allocated funding.
A further £40m has been allocated to transport projects, in Ealing, Bexley, Enfield and the West Anglia Route in North London.
Johnson said: “The London Enterprise Panel has a crucial role to play in supporting jobs, regeneration and new businesses, maintaining our competitive economic edge, and preserving London’s position as the best big city on earth.”
