AN OUTLINE planning application has been handed in to Bridgend Council for the creation of a large industrial employment unit near Sarn.
The plans were handed in by Bridgend-based renewable energy company Cenin, and could see the development of a new three-storey building featuring offices and amenities, designed with “large volume spaces for flexible employment use”.
The site would be located north of the M4 motorway from Bridgend, south of the village of Sarn, and close to the the Sarn Park Services and popular McArthur Glen Designer Outlet.
If approved it would be know as the the Ti’r Isha Employment Area, set on a 10.3 acre greenfield site site – which is also allocated in the Local Development Plan (LDP) for employment uses.
The project for the new employment space would also tie in with wider plans for what is known as the Bridgend Energy Hub project which could see the creation of a number of renewable energy sites across the county borough, with the aim of helping Bridgend and Wales to reach net zero targets.
These include plans for a solar farm site named Tyn-y-Waun, as well as a 12-turbine wind farm named Mynydd Y Gaer, and the proposed junction 36 Transport Hub.
While there have not been any occupiers announced for the potential employment site as of yet, plans say the hope would be for a “high energy user” to take the building which would be partially powered by the already approved solar farm.
The report read: “It is considered that outline permission for the Employment Area will give flexibility and broaden market interest. The aspiration is for a high energy user to take the building which will be environmentally run by the solar and wind farms and boost the economy of the local area.”
The outline plans have now been handed in to Bridgend Council for review before a full planning application can eventually be submitted.
