Policy information sourced from the Maidstone Borough Council Local Plan 2021-2038
LRSP11(A): Safeguarding Existing Employment Sites and Premises.
Within Designated Economic Development Areas
- 1. Designated Economic Development Areas, as identified in Table 7.2, will be safeguarded for employment uses, with the following exceptions:
- a. Proposals that intensify the employment use of part of the site, supported by limited enabling development;
- b. Proposals for mixed use redevelopment incorporating elements of non B or E(g) class where they aim to provide for at least the same or an increase in the level of job opportunities as existed when the employment space was previously used, subject to viability and site specific circumstances.
- 2. Proposals that would lead to the partial or total loss of employment land/premises within the designated Economic Development Areas will only be permitted where it can be demonstrated:
- a. That there is no reasonable prospect of their take up or continued use for the designated uses in the medium term, based on a viability assessment and robust marketing exercise; and
- b. That the proposal would not give rise to amenity conflicts with existing or proposed employment uses/activities in the vicinity of the site.
- 3. Proposals for the redevelopment of premises and the infilling of vacant sites for business uses will be permitted. Where such proposals are within countryside EDA locations, their design, scale and materials should be appropriate to the setting and should be accompanied by significant landscaping within, and at the edge of, the development.
Outside of Designated Economic Development Areas
- 4. Elsewhere in the borough, outside of designated Economic Development Areas, permission will be granted for the expansion or intensification of existing industrial or business uses, recognising the specific locational requirements of different sectors, provided that the proposals:
- a. Cannot be suitably relocated to an allocated employment/mixed-use site or designated Economic Development Area, or to a suitable site/premises within the Urban Area, Rural Service Centres or Larger Villages, as per the settlement hierarchy;
- b. Would be of a type and scale of activity that does not harm the character and appearance of the site and its surroundings nor harm the amenity of occupiers of nearby properties;
- c. Would be readily accessible by public transport, and by bicycle and foot, wherever possible, or contribute towards provision of new sustainable transport infrastructure to serve the area, in order to make the development accessible by those modes; and
- d. Have a layout, access, parking, landscaping and facilities that are appropriate to the site and its surroundings.
Elsewhere in the Borough
- 5. Elsewhere in the borough, outside of allocations or designated Economic Development Areas, applications seeking an alternative use of employment land/premises will only be supported where the proposal:
- a. Would help meet an identified need;
- b. Would not undermine key economic sites or the vitality and viability of the town centres, and is compatible with other policies in the framework; and
- c. Complies with all other relevant development plan policies.
For more information, please visit Maidstone’s Local Plan Maidstone Borough Council Local Plan 2021-2038