Stafford Road Corridor Area Action Plan

Junction 2VisionThis area will have fulfilled its potential to become thepremier high quality employment location inWolverhampton, with a focus on leading edge, hightechnology industry. Investment in the FordhousesEmployment Area, infrastructure and otherenvironmental improvements will mean that peopleworking in and travelling into the City will be greeted bya high quality environment.Development Outputs• 74.8ha of Employment Land• 41.7ha Employment Development Opportunitiesand Investment Areas• Protection of and investment in open spaces,nature conservation assets and local character /townscape features.• Delivery of transport proposals and otherinfrastructure to support and ensure the successfuldelivery of developmentDevelopment Parameters• The majority of the development opportunities in thearea have higher risks associated with contamination/ geotechnical, although some areas have moderaterisks.• The Character Area is a key gateway intoWolverhampton, as such a high quality design isimportant to consider.• Areas of flood risk affect some developmentopportunities in Fordhouses Employment Area – sitespecific recommendations from the Strategic FloodRisk Assessment (SFRA) need to be considered.• Potential for a community-wide energy infrastructure(e.g. a CHP network)Strategic Options Considered - NoneSustainability AppraisalThe proposals will support the ongoing regeneration ofthe Stafford Road Corridor linked with the developmentof the i54 site and the surrounding areas. Due to thescale and magnitude of the proposals (when included incombination with proposed development of the majorityof the i54 site within South Staffordshire), thedevelopment of new employment land in the area hasthe potential to lead to additional effects on townscape(and landscape) quality, the built environment, and,through a stimulation of traffic growth, implications for airand noise quality and greenhouse gas emissions.These effects will in part be mitigated by the othermeasures put forward, including linked to sustainabletransport measures, open space designations andimprovements, expansion of nature conservationdesignations, and the protection and enhancement ofthe integrity of local buildings, features and areas ofvalue for the historic environment and/or localdistinctiveness. Change in the area will however need tobe managed carefully to help ensure that the likelyeffects of the expansion of employment land in the northof the Stafford Road Corridor are minimised.Options Report for the Development of the Stafford Road Corridor39