Page 38 - KPRM 2019

Kent County Council, Medway Council & Kent’s District Council Commentary
Infrastructure and Regeneration
Continued
Discovery Park in Sandwich continues to bring major investment to the district with Pfizer continuing its commitment to the UK life sciences sector by announcing a £5m investment. An additional £5m of funding has been unlocked from Kent County Council via the East Kent Growth Fund established to help investors grow businesses and create new jobs.
Dover District is extremely popular as a great place to live, work and play. The District continues to see significant housing growth. The Council is in the process of producing a new Local Plan which will include policies to guide new development to 2038. Consultation on the draft plan is planned for early 2020.
Whitfield Urban Expansion continues to progress with the Aylesham Garden Village, alongside continued growth across the district. The District Council has been awarded funding from the Government’s Housing Infrastructure Fund
to support the development of a Bus Rapid Transfer System between Whitfield, Dover town centre and Dover Priory station.
Legal & General’s £53m St James Development is open in the heart of Dover town centre, with a range of top names in retail and leisure.
Dover District Council has launched a Town Centre Business Grant Scheme, which offers grant of up to £10,000 to
bring commercial properties back into use, or up to £1,000 to upgrade or improve the appearance of commercial properties. It applies to designated areas in Dover, Deal and Sandwich.
The new £26m Dover District Leisure Centre opened in early 2019. The centre features the first swimming pool in Kent to be purpose-built to Sport England specifications for a county standard competition pool. The learner pool has a moveable
Dover
Dover District is open for business with multi-million pound investments in town centre and waterfront regeneration, new commercial, retail and leisure spaces, and will host one of the world’s biggest golf championships, The Open at the Royal St Georges course in Sandwich in 2020.
Dover is just 21 miles from Calais and is a vital international gateway. Combine this with excellent links to central London – just an hour from Dover by High Speed One – nowhere is better connected for doing business and for visiting The Open. The district is getting ready for the return of the golf championship next year. Dover District Council, Kent County Council, the Royal & Ancient Golf Club and Royal St George’s are working together to prepare a warm welcome for the championship.
Dover is the UK’s second busiest cruise port and hosts many of the world’s top cruise lines. Cruise ships are already being booked to attend The Open. The new Saga cruise ship, Spirit of Discovery, was officially named by HRH The Duchess of Cornwall in July. Ahead of this, the Port of Dover officially unveiled its new multi-purpose Berth 4, taking a major
step towards the full launch of the Dover Western Docks regeneration in 2020. Dover will be the first port-of-call for a new Virgin cruise ship and DFDS has announced a new ship for the English Channel due in 2021.
The Dover Western Docks Revival is well underway, including a new marina pier that is already open. Construction on a transformed waterfront is progressing to attract a range of shops, bars, cafés and restaurants with Dover’s unique backdrop of the harbour, the famous white cliffs and Dover Castle.
36 Kent Property Market Report 2019
Discovery Park, Sandwich.
PHOTO: LOCATE IN KENT