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Waterfront and West End Innovation Quarter
Overview
As part of the Glasgow City Region City Deal the Council will invest approximately £113m to deliver the Clyde Waterfront and West End Innovation Quarter (CWWEIQ) project.
The project covers an area that extends along the river corridor from the City Centre to Govan and northwards to the west-end. The area is home to economic assets of national importance.
These 'key anchors' will be used to drive sustainable and inclusive economic growth and tackle physical and social deprivation within waterfront communities.
Investment and Development
City Deal investment aims to encourage investment and development activity within the area by addressing the following issues:
- Stimulate development in areas where it is presently constrained by the costs of remediation, site access or other issues;
- Provide high quality and effective links along both sides of the River Clyde, between the City Centre and the West End, and between business and research clusters, key institutions, visitor attractions, and residential communities; and
- Maintain and enhance the quality of this part of Glasgow as a place to invest, live and work in, with a focus on 'gateway' routes and entry points for the areas main business, cultural and institutional facilities.
Community Benefits
The investment offers the following benefits:
- The redevelopment of vacant and derelict sites within the area for employment and housing purposes;
- Improvements to the local road network to support re-development of vacant sites on the north-bank of the Clyde and around the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital;
- The creation of a new and enhanced pedestrian and cycle infrastructure including a proposed cross-river connection between Govan and Partick;
- Improvements to the public realm particularly in Central Govan, Byres Road and at key locations along the river corridor.
Consultation
Consultation is ongoing in relation to a number of proposed investments including Central Govan Public Realm, Govan-Partick Bridge, Active Travel (North), Byres Road Public Realm and investment in Quay Walls.
Future community engagement will take place as and when each components of the project is being developed.
Projects
The current projects are listed below:
- Access and Integrity of Waterfront
As the functional use of the River Clyde as a working port has declined over a series of decades, so too has the investment to repair and maintain the associated infrastructure. Under-investment in quay walls has led to a number of collapses in recent years. The collapse of quay walls has the potential to create severance in the area by disconnecting parts of the existing and proposed riverfront network. Additionally, the development cost/risk associated with the condition of quay walls is restricting the delivery of development on key opportunity sites within the project area.
The City Deal investment aims to release the economic potential of the river corridor by undertaking consolidation and adaptation of quay walls in order to unlock opportunity sites and improve connectivity within the project area and between the river and the city centre.
- Investing in the Strategic Road Network to Unlock Development
The project area benefits from good transport connectivity with the Clydeside Expressway and M8 providing links to the wider City region. Anderston Cross is a surface level signalised junction lying beneath Junction 19 of the M8 just west of the centre of Glasgow. It is a key junction within the City and is an important link between the local and national road network.
The junction currently operates beyond capacity resulting in considerable delays during peak hours and when events are being held at the SEC. Traffic modelling has demonstrated that there is a requirement to upgrade Anderston Cross to accommodate additional pedestrian, cycle and and vehicular traffic associated with the development of 5 major development sites on the north-bank of the Clyde.
- Developing the Economic Role of Scottish Events Campus (SEC) and Pacific Quay
The SEC is one of Glasgow's major visitor attractions as an events and international conference venue. It is a focus of waterfront regeneration and the City's Economic Strategy. An estimated economic impact of £354million was generated by the SEC in the financial year 2015-16 financial year. The footbridge link between SEC and Exhibition Centre Station is the main gateway to the Campus for many visitors including those arriving by train. It currently presents a very poor image which detracts from the SEC offer when competing for major conference events.
City Deal funding will be used to make a significant investment in the bridge in order to improve the quality of the route and to create a high quality gateway that aligns with SEC position as a world-class events and conference venue.
Pacific Quay is located immediately opposite the SEC on the south bank of the river. Scottish Enterprise has overseen the development of Pacific Quay as a digital media quarter for the city. An evaluation in 2009 estimated that the investment at Pacific Quay had generated 4,000 gross new jobs. City Deal funding will be used to address poor connectivity to public transport and poor pedestrian circulation which has been identified as a constraint to development of remaining opportunity sites.
- Developing the Economic Role of University of Glasgow
Research has demonstrated that the University of Glasgow contributes more than £500 million to Scotland's economy- equivalent to 0.5% of national GDP and 1.6% of the economy in the West of Scotland. The University has recently acquired the former Western Infirmary site and secured Planning Permission in Principle for a significant expansion of the Campus.
This expansion will only serve to increase the University's economic footprint within Glasgow and the city region. The expansion of the University campus across the Western Infirmary site will lead to a 20,000 increase in students over the next 20 years. This will undoubtedly improve the commercial attractiveness of Byres Road/Church Street however it will also create challenges which the Council will have to address.
The City Deal investment in public realm will maximise the attractiveness and appeal of the Western Infirmary site for high-value commercial end uses and sustain Byres Road as a key town centre in the face of growing competition. It will ensure that the Byres Road is capable of accommodating a significant increase in footfall and cycle traffic associated with the expansion of the University.
The proposed investment will enhance the quality of the western edge of the campus and accelerate delivery of the commercial floorspace that has been consented as part of the masterplan. It will also encourage increased dwell-time and retail spend on Byres Road supporting the vitality of the traditional high street offer.
- Improving Connectivity between the University of Glasgow and Queen Elizabeth University Hospital (QEUH)
The river represents a significant physical barrier within the project area which does not currently function as a cohesive place but as two very different economic areas. Regeneration of the north-bank has been driven by proximity to the established residential markets of the west-end and access to the University of Glasgow and cultural attractions, retail and services. Govan is located in close proximity to these amenities but is not physically connected to them- as a consequence the social, economic and physical regeneration of the area has lagged behind.
City Deal investment will be used to deliver a new pedestrian and cycle bridge across the river and high-quality active travel networks linking to the University Campus on the north bank and QEUH on the south of the river. Introduction of the bridge will improve physical connectivity between innovation clusters at the University and QEUH and to the west end which is one of the most successful parts of the city. The intervention will remove a physical barrier to employment opportunities on either bank of the river and will reduce the cost of commutes for those traveling to and from work.
The bridge will provide a gateway to the river corridor and will form the western edge of a 10km riverside route linking visitor attractions on both banks of the river from Govan to Glasgow Green helping to increase linked visits between attractions. This is in keeping with the Glasgow City Region Tourist Strategy which seeks to attract an additional 1 million visits per year by 2023.
- Central Govan Action Plan
Govan occupies a strategically important location at the centre of the project area and is situated within a triangle of economic opportunity created by Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, University of Glasgow and the Digital Media Quarter at Pacific Quay. Despite its locational advantages it has been identified by the Scottish Government as an 'area of deep-rooted deprivation'.
The proposed investment aims to complement the work of the Central Govan Action Plan in order to address market failure and improve place quality allowing Govan to capitalise on its proximity to major growth centres. Govan is well placed to derive sustained and lasting benefits from the City Deal investment programme which supports the City Development Plan aim to re-position Govan as a sustainable urban quarter within a vibrant river corridor.
City Deal will support the delivery of commercial floorspace which is vital to ensure that the re-development of Water Row will deliver a lively focal point on the riverside with a mix of commercial, community, leisure and residential uses. Targeted improvements to public realm are considered essential if local traders are to benefit from increased footfall generated by the Govan-Partick Bridge and if the perception of Govan as a location for investment in residential/commercial development is to be improved.
- Developing the Economic Role of the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital (QEUH)
As a key economic driver of the City Region, the QEUH offers significant potential for the Waterfront. It is expected to create demand for commercial space from the high-value life-science, precision medicine and medical technology sectors keen to capitalise on the clinical adjacencies. The Council is currently engaged in discussions with Scottish Enterprise, University of Glasgow and NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde regarding the development of a new Waterfont Innovation Campus within the area.
City Deal funding will be used to deliver improvements to the local road network to address transport constraints and meet the development deficit associated with the development of an Innovation Cluster on vacant and derelict land to the north of the QEUH.
Fact File
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