Wrexham Gateway Project in line for £4.79m boost after North Wales Growth Deal bid gets support

The Wrexham Gateway Project could be in line for a £4.79 million pound funding boost after being invited to join the North Wales Growth Deal portfolio after members of the North Wales Ambition Board supported a recommendation to invite five new projects.

Belated the Ambition Board announced that they had supported a recommendation to invite five new projects to join the Growth Deal portfolio – subject to agreement of certain conditions, each project will now go on to develop an outline business case.

The North Wales Growth Deal is a £1billion Investment to the region, £240m of which has been funded by both Welsh and UK Governments.

The new projects included in the latest round have been awarded a provisional allocation of Growth Deal capital funding subject to the approval of their business case. The projects are:

• Responsible Adventure project by Zip World – £6.2m
• Kinmel Studios project by Stage Fifty – £6.8m
• Holyhead Hydrogen Hub project by Menter Môn – £3.8m
• Deeside Waste to Fuel Plant project by The Circular Economy Ltd – £6.4m
• Wrexham Gateway project by Wrexham County Borough Council – £4.79m

Subject to agreement of certain conditions, each project will now go on to develop an outline business case.

We asked Wrexham Council about the prospective funding, and if it all proceeds, when the outputs will be seen.

The Council noted the ongoing “Wrexham Gateway” project ‘aims to regenerate key sites and transport infrastructure around Mold Road – a key corridor into the city’, adding that will include ‘improvements to rail, bus and car travel connectivity, new hotel and conference facilities, office space, and improvements to the Racecourse stadium that will allow international football to return to North Wales’.

Cllr Mark Pritchard, Leader of the Council, said, “This is very exciting news and we are grateful to the North Wales Ambition Board for their support. We have committed to securing investment sources for this ambitious programme of works and we are now a little closer to our goals.

“I would like to thank everyone involved in securing the progress to date.”

Cllr Nigel Williams, Lead Member for Economy and Regeneration, said, “It’s certainly an exciting time for Wrexham and the plans we and our partners have has the potential to transform the Gateway to Wrexham. They will also see a boost towards employment and skills for local communities.

“We now look forward to working with our partners to produce an outline business plan that will show how the project will be delivered sustainably and within the budget”

Cllr Dyfrig Siencyn, Chair of the North Wales Ambition Board said: “We are pleased to support the recommendation that these five exciting new projects can proceed to the next phase in order to secure Growth Deal funding. They are transformational projects which have the potential to be significant additions to the North Wales economy and to generate additional investment and employment opportunites in key sectors. They reflect our vision for innovative and sustainable economic prosperity through collaboration between public and private sectors.”

Alwen Williams, Portfolio Director added on Friday*: “Today’s decision is a significant step forward as we allocate Growth Deal funding to these innovative new projects. I look forward to working with each organisation as they develop their outline business cases and I am keen to see the positive impact they can have on our communities and economy.”

Welsh Secretary David TC Davies said: “It’s brilliant to see new projects with so much great potential reach the next phase of funding. The UK Government has contributed £120m to the North Wales Growth Deal and I’m delighted to see this money, along with contributions from our partners, being used to help transform the economy of North Wales.

“This transformation will provide well-paid jobs for the future, driving growth and prosperity and making a material difference to so many people who live and work in north Wales.”

Economy Minister Vaughan Gething said: “I’m pleased to see five new projects become part of the North Wales Growth Deal. These exciting projects have the potential to be transformational for the region, contributing towards employment, skills and will be a boost for local communities. I look forward to seeing them develop with the support of the Growth Deal.”

Each organisation will agree a memorandum of understanding which will set out the expectations of them in relation to securing the funding. If the projects become reality each one will have 12 months to deliver their plans.

(* Williams and others were quoted on Friday, however the Ambition Board specifically excluded us from telling you. On Friday the Ambition Board were told that situation was unambitious at best. Subsequently we are told there ‘was no intention to close anyone out’, however we were informed there was a ‘discussion and agreement’ not to share the details until Monday despite it being made public elsewhere on Friday. After pointing that out we had a slightly surreal response that reiterated there was ‘no deliberate effort to close Wrexham.com out’ – something that is factually untrue.