Plans to create a new National Business District at Shawfield have received the go ahead from South Lanarkshire Council.

The £15m project will regenerate large areas of vacant and derelict land around the former Shawfield Industrial Estate and could support 15,000 jobs.

The Council's Planning Committee gave the green light earlier this week for the groundworks to begin, including landscaping, decontamination and infrastructure to establish development plots suitable for future business development.

This will include a pedestrian link from Glasgow Road, which will connect with a new footbridge over the River Clyde. A landscaped riverside walkway and footway will also be created as well as an area of public space where the new bridge meets the south bank of the Clyde. Some temporary landscaping work will take place on Glasgow Road including tree planting, grass areas and ornamental planting, while a temporary vehicle access area and parking area will also be created.

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The Council also agreed that site wide culvert engineering works can begin. The aim of these works is to remove pathways for contamination entering the culverts and migrating into the water environment, as well as maximising the potential development space.

Leader of South Lanarkshire Council, Councillor Eddie McAvoy, said: "We have already given outline approval to these ambitious and groundbreaking plans - this week’s application was for the work to really get underway.

"It's important to remember that the site as it is currently is mostly vacant and derelict land with contaminants in the ground.

"These approvals will hopefully attract people back into the area with the longer term goal being to create a first-class riverside hub for business and leisure use."

(JP/CD)