A £90m technology park has been granted planning approval to be built on green belt land near Oxford.
Cherwell District Council granted permission for the Oxford Technology Park at Kidlington 13 years after developers first tried to get the go-ahead.
Development partners Bloombridge claimed 352,000 sq ft of enquiries for research and development space had been lost in the last five years because planning approval was delayed. Bloombridge is partnered by Hill Street Holdings in developing the park.
A government inspector had earlier approved the plan for a 434,000 sq ft of research and development facilities on the land formerly used by Gosford All Blacks rugby club.
Michael Gibbard, Cherwell District Council’s lead member for planning, said: “Although this land lies within the Oxford green belt we decided that there were very special circumstances that needed to be taken into account in approving this application.
“This development is set to offer an important, well-located facility that will encourage future economic growth both in Kidlington and throughout the district,” he said.
“In making this decision we took account of concerns that had been raised and we have attached stringent conditions to the application to ensure these are addressed.”
Richard Cutler, partner of Bloombridge, said: “This project has taken 13 years to come through the planning system, with a recorded loss of 352,000 sq ft of enquiries for space from R&D businesses in the last five years.
“We are delighted that Cherwell District Council has supported the local plan inspector by confirming that very special circumstances exist for the grant of this planning permission in the Oxford green belt.”
