Ellis Williams is delighted to support our client, Manx Development Corporation (MDC) in unveiling a significant development planned for the area around Westmoreland & Demesne Road, Douglas. The scheme, known as “Westmoreland Village”, is a large sustainable development based on the “20-minute neighbourhood” concept, and will provide a mixture of residential dwellings, affordable housing, high quality public spaces and places to work.
The “20-minute neighbourhood” concept, is based on the idea that residents’ everyday needs can be met locally within a 10-minute return journey from home by walking, cycling or via local public transport. This approach encourages people to become more active, improving their mental and physical health. This reduces traffic, enables local shops and businesses to thrive and allows people to see more of their neighbours, strengthening community bonds. Westmoreland Village is just a 10-minute walk from Douglas town centre making it an ideal location to adopt this concept.
The proposed development includes 133 dwellings, in addition to the 37 already being provided at the Former Nurses’ Home, through a mix of apartments and 3 bed townhouses. These homes sit alongside over 20,000ft2 of office space created via the reimagining of Crookall House, which will benefit from significant refurbishment. The 4 retail units and a community pavilion will also be built complementing the existing educational, health and recreational facilities already in the area.
Sustainability is at the heart of the project. The designs have been progressed on Passive design principles utilising the architectural design of the building to minimise energy consumption. The scheme will use the latest solar and heat pump technology to significantly reduce carbon output and running costs.
Following on from the Chief Minister’s initial announcement back in July, MDC and the team is now at the appropriate stage to undertake a public consultation. MDC is committed to continued community engagement and is welcoming input from island residents to help inform the design prior to taking the planning application forward.
MDC will be running two drop-in sessions at the Douglas Lawn Tennis Club on Kensington Road and invite anyone who would like to find out more about the development or ask any questions to come along. MDC would like to stress that it is not a formal presentation and encourage the public to drop by at a time convenient to them.
The Ellis Williams and MDC Team will be on-hand at the following times:
Friday 27th January 3:30pm – 6:30pm
Saturday 28th January 11am – 3pm
Chair of the Board, Sean Gilbert, commented:
“We are particularly delighted with how well the design for ‘Westmoreland Village’ has progressed; integrating into the existing fabric of Douglas, providing revitalisation and regeneration of the Westmoreland Road area. It is a pleasure to be able to provide new build contemporary homes that will deliver sustainable living in a town-centre location, and to reimagine another iconic Manx building in the form of Crookall House.”
