Town short of industry sites

INDUSTRIALISTS in Heathfield want to expand but can't find the premises they need in the town, a parish council meeting was told this week.

Members of Heathfield and Waldron highways, planning and street lighting committee were worried about the lack of land allocated for industry.

They were particularly concerned about land at Ghyll Road, designated for industry for the past 20 years but which remains undeveloped.

They feared the latest owners of the land would prefer to build houses and agreed to re-affirm to Wealden Council their view that it should remain for industry.

'Some industrialists in the area, quite close to where we are talking about, need to expand but can't find the premises. If we are not careful we will lose them altogether and they do provide work in the town and support the High Street,' said Cllr Roland Davis.

Cllr Dick Angel, who also sits on Wealden Council's economic revitalisation committee said they were currently looking at sites within Uckfield and Crowborough with a view to promoting starter units of about 1,000 sq ft.

He said the problem with the Ghyll Road site was that nobody could be forced to develop the land, which sloped at an angle of 45 degrees down towards the ghyll. If a developer could find land, like that at the bottom of Station Road for example, it would cost much less to build there.

Cllr Richard Strange, who is a member of the town's partnership trust, said the partnership was also keen to preserve the industrial designation at Ghyll Road. 'All the other industrial estates are already developed and no other land has been set aside in the Local Plan,' he said.