At Tipner West Portsmouth has a unique opportunity to deliver an innovative development that celebrates the city’s location, heritage and skills – creating a new gateway to the city.
Portsmouth was awarded a £48.75 million City Deal grant from central government to invest in growth, critical infrastructure, skills and jobs at Tipner West and Horsea Island East. This location has been identified as the ideal place to create a green marine innovation hub that will boost the Solent’s marine sector, drive investment into the city, and build on Portsmouth’s great maritime heritage.
Plans include a green, marine employment hub, new homes and sea defences to better protect this part of the city from future flooding and improve the long term resilience of Portsmouth Harbour’s ecosystem.
The proposals have sustainability and nature at their heart and will prioritise the harbour’s natural habitats and biodiversity.
Tipner West is a key component of Portsmouth City Council’s regeneration strategy. It is one of the biggest expansion opportunities for the city in over a century and one of the largest in the UK. It looks to the future and aims to deliver a lasting legacy that is both inclusive and environmentally sensitive.
The development aims to provide a minimum of 814 homes and maximum of 1,250 homes, including private, affordable, build to rent and assisted living (minimum affordable housing at 30%). Alongside this there will be a minimum of 58,000 sqm of marine focussed employment space, primary education facilities, food and beverage, retail outlets, community facilities, sports and leisure facilities.
The project involves extensive site infrastructure works including land remediation, and a new link bridge between Tipner and Horsea. In addition there are significant coastal defence works, habitat recreation works, undercroft parking and a new bus terminal.
Portsmouth City Council has seven guiding principles to help shape the masterplan for the site. The proposals have nature at their heart and will prioritise the harbour’s natural habitats and biodiversity, as well as maximising local job creation and minimising costs and impact on city council finances and services to the public.
These proposals will also be shaped by Portsmouth’s City Vision and extensive data and findings from the environmental, habitat, marine and heritage surveys that have taken place over recent years.
The council wants to deliver nature focused place making to contribute to Greening of the City, in line with the City Vision 2040, which achieves more than the statutory biodiversity requirement.
A key challenge posed by the waterfront location is that Tipner West is on a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSI), a Special Protection Area (SPA), and a Ramsar site. This means it is critical that any environmental impacts are mitigated.
The council is working in partnership with Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB), Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust (HIWWT), Ministry of Defence and Historic England to develop proposals that are capable of satisfying the regulatory requirements of Natural England (NE), the Marine Management Organisation (MMO) and the Environment Agency (EA)