Dave Stewart says "acquiring these sites will protect Island jobs and preserve marine engineering in this location, as well as provide land for housing on a brownfield site"
The Isle of Wight council say investing in the prime waterfront site will not only protect at least 150 marine manufacturing jobs, but preserve key employment land for generations to come
Securing the future of the Columbine building and protecting marine manufacturing on the Isle of Wight are just some of the reasons why the IW council are seeking to seal the deal
"We need to keep that engineering heritage", "We can buy this and keep this site for the Island", “It is our decision, we will own it and we will take responsibility for it” and "we will keep a really good reputation for being business-friendly" are just some of the comments by councillors discussing the purchase of Venture Quays
Talks with Homes England, which owns Venture Quays, have been ongoing for months to determine the future of the site after plans to transform it into a luxury waterfront development, with townhouses, a hotel and bars, fell through.
The purchase of the sites will be funded by regeneration funds, approved by the council in its budget for 2019/20, but is subject to being able to agree a purchase price with Homes England.
The reasons given to businesses in Venture Quays were contractual and health and safety, but they have not been told what they need to do to mitigate the risks.