A PLANNING application has been drawn up seeking permission to extend the Omega site with a warehouse on green belt land in Bold.

Proposals have been submitted by applicants Omega St Helens Ltd / TJ Morris (Home Bargain) to St Helens Council's planning department.

Home Bargains would join a long list of big names to take sites at Omega, on a large part of the former Burtonwood airbase.

Omega North consists of distribution warehouses for Brake Bros, Hermes Group, and Travis Perkins.  Meanwhile, Omega South consists of bases for The Hut Group, Amazon, Domino's Pizza, and the largest Walmart development outside the USA, with an Asda distribution warehouse, along with plans for retail, leisure, and phased housing developments.  The plans for Bold look to develop on land to the west of Omega South, south of the M62.

Plans state the proposed building would measure approximately 449 metres in length and 221 metres at its widest and say the new warehouse would see around 3,000 jobs created at the site.

The applicant claims that "it is considered that ‘very special circumstances’ exist that serve to justify the proposed development in the green belt".

A cumulative impact document in the plans says that the development would "have a moderate beneficial effect on the economy in St Helens".

It states this includes "approximately 1,103 net FTE employment opportunities" during construction. It adds there would be "approximately 3,014 net FTE employment opportunities associated with the outline planning application site".

READ > Labour wins Burtonwood by-election

The application adds the "vision for Zone 8 is the creation of a successful, leading edge commercial development which is "attractive to potential occupiers with large space requirements".

It says the main component of the proposed buildings is "to be used for a possible storage and distribution" use and would include two or three storey offices.

They add: "There will also be a gatehouse for each plot. The units could be single or double sided. It is intended that the design and layout of the buildings will create a shared character identity for the development.

"The buildings will be designed to create a strong visual focus on the office component and to use materials and colours selected from a palette used previously across the Omega site.

"The HGV entrance for the site will be from an extension of the recently constructed infrastructure road, using a new roundabout. "The vehicular access for cars will be via the same route and branching off the new infrastructure road".

Consultation on plans lasts until Wednesday, February 19.