Work on one of the largest regeneration initiatives in Europe, the former Ravenscraig Steelworks in North Lanarkshire, could begin in the next few months, after North Lanarkshire Local Authority submitted the business plans for the £73 million scheme to the Scottish Futures Trust.
If approved, the project will be funded by Tax Incremental Funding (TIF), administered locally by the trust. TIF is a popular form of financing in America since the 1950s that has only recently found its way to the UK. It is a means of funding projects in mainly disadvantaged areas that would not otherwise take place, through borrowing against expected future taxes as a result of, for instance because of the rise in value of surrounding land and buildings. The Council’s Maureen McConachie said that, without this funding, the project is unlikely to go ahead.
The scheme is certainly complex. Expected to take over 30 years at a cost of £1.2 billion, it will effectively create a whole new town and will involve building a new road, a dual carriageway seven miles in length, a new roundabout, the widening of existing roads, and will ultimately create over 12,000 jobs.
Phase 1 of the project had been well underway – with the creation of a new campus for Motherwell College and a major new sporting facility for the region, at a combined cost of £101m, plus the development of new housing – when the effects of the recession hit.
Once it has had the opportunity to review the business plan, the Scottish Futures Trust will submit both the plans and its recommendations to the Scottish Government for final approval. Ms McConachie stressed the importance of the development to the region in that it will bring major economic and housing benefits. Council Leader Jim McCabe is very hopeful of a positive outcome.
