A COMPANY has secured planning permission for an industrial and logistics development at Wrexham Industrial Estate, bringing the developer's total investment in Wrexham to more than £160million.

Wrexham Council granted permission for the 150,00 sq ft Grade A, FI Real Estate Management (FIREM) development of the 7.5-acre Site 5 earlier this week, becoming one of the first stalled applications to be heard at committee following the resolution of the city's two-year phosphate challenges.

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The new site adds to FIREM's rapidly expanding portfolio at Wrexham Industrial Estate, where it is the largest landowner with a portfolio totalling 2.8m sq ft of industrial space.

Plans were also recently validated for the 62.8-acre Kingmoor regeneration site where FIREM hopes to build a £80m (construction value), one million sq ft development of warehouse and office space for logistics and distribution, supporting 1,200 jobs.

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Building work at Site 5 is expected to start later this year and will be delivered by FIREM's dedicated construction division, FI Construction, which will be responsible for FIREM's new build pipeline across the UK, totalling 7m sq ft over the next four years.

Site 5, which is anticipated to support 250 jobs, brings FIREM's total investment at Wrexham Industrial Estate to more than £160m. In January this year, the business acquired a further 56 acres of land and following the completion of its first tranche of developments, new leases were secured with logistics specialists, Gorton Brothers, and multinational furniture company, Howdens Joinery.

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Tim Knowles, founder and managing director of FI Real Estate Management said: "Wrexham Council's work with Natural Resources Wales to overcome its phosphate challenges has meant that stalled development can be brought forward to unlock the city's potential and stimulate economic growth.

"Our team has put a great deal of work into our plans, not just for Site 5 but for our wider investment at Wrexham Industrial Estate, and we're very pleased to be able to move forward with our ambitious plans to create exceptional space that will elevate Wrexham's economic and employment potential."

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MP for Wrexham, Sarah Atherton, added: "Having grappled with the phosphates issue for more than two years, I am pleased that FIREM, having chosen to invest significantly in Wrexham, have become one of the first 'stalled' applications to be granted planning permission.

"This development, which is anticipated to support 250 jobs, will bring greater prosperity to our city. As the local MP, my responsibility is to ensure that growth for Wrexham is not stifled but achieved sympathetically with the environment, whilst mitigating the impact on local communities.

"This is all positive news for Wrexham."