‘Projects of this scale do not happen in the city every day’

Seamus Gillan, owner of the developers, South Bank Square, said he was delighted that the council’s Planning Committee this week unanimously agreed to grant Outline Planning Permission for the project

Around 750 homes are to be constructed on the 90 acre site adjacent to Crescent Link and Clooney Road over the next decade in an investment totalling £100m. This will make it the largest private housing development in the North West since the property crash in 2007.

As part of the development new traffic lights and additional road lanes will be installed by the developer at Caw Roundabout, with another set of traffic lights at Gransha Roundabout.

Mr Gillan thanked everyone at the council who worked on and supported their proposal, as well as elected representatives for the area and members of the Planning Committee.

“Projects of this scale do not happen in the city every day,” he said. “This development will bring an enormous investment to the area, which will produce a significant economic benefit for the whole community. In addition to the headline figure of our £100m investment, we expect that up to 1,000 construction jobs will be created during the construction period over the next 10 years.”

SDLP Colr. Martin Reilly said the plan “secures the future improvements of the Caw Roundabout specifically with regard to provision of additional lanes and traffic signalisation on the roundabout itself, which is exactly the type of improvements that those who use the roundabout frequently will know are much needed,” he said.

“I have been a long term advocate for these types of improvements at Caw Roundabout which will mean both ends of the Foyle Bridge will have these safety measures and traffic controls. Far, far too many accidents occur at this location at present.”

The development is South Bank Square’s first major investment in the city and it is understood that a detailed planning application will follow this outline permission to enable the commencement of development on site in the first quarter of 2020.

Mr Gillan (pictured above) continued: “By delivering over 750 new homes to the area we will be making a vital contribution to increasing the amount of available housing in the area.

“The scheme which we are developing will provide a mix of new homes including detached, semi-detached, townhouses, and apartments. In addition to these new homes, our masterplan includes some commercial space, significant play and recreation areas, a linear park and public amenity space.”

These amenities, he said, will help establish it as “a great place to live.”