Today is another big day for Bristol, as we continue to bring in more investment and create more jobs to solidify our city’s recovery from the pandemic. Thanks to two announcements in time for the longest day of the year, Bristol’s future is looking even brighter as we work to build a more sustainable and inclusive city.
Just last week, out and about on Gloucester Road visiting local traders, at the Area 51 comic book shop I heard once again how big events like comic book conventions, trade shows and major conferences have for too long skipped our city. Bristol has lost out to Cardiff and London because of the council’s historic failure to get stuff done.
We already know that Bristol’s 17,000+ seater YTL arena, set to be the greenest ever built in Europe, will start to set this right and bring the world’s biggest music stars to our city. For other events, like comic cons and even national party conferences, this weekend’s news is a real game changer for Bristol.
Legal & General have confirmed an incredible £350 million investment in our city’s future for Temple Island, where we put our city’s long-term economic interests ahead of short-term politics. This boost will see Bristol get a real conference centre alongside a new hotel, office space, and hundreds more affordable homes. Temple Quarter is already one of the UK’s largest regeneration schemes, with the renovation of Brunel’s station underway and, working with local communities, wider work beginning to create 10,000 new homes and 22,000 new jobs for Bristolians.
Bristol Sport have also today submitted their planning application for a new 4,000-seater indoor stadium for the Bristol Flyers basketball team, adjacent to the existing stadium, which is home to the Bristol Bears and Bristol City. Revised plans, worth in the region of £200 million, include more community facilities, greater pedestrianisation, hundreds of new homes, while retaining green space and aiming for a biodiversity net gain.
This morning BBC Radio Bristol interviewed Mark Kelly, Managing Director at Ashton Gate, about their expansion plans, which follow on from the recent £45 million improvements to their current stadium. Mark was right to say that the city needs housing and that, without more conference facilities, which Ashton Gate also includes, the city loses out. These plans and the Temple Island project are complementary developments, supported by the business community. This investment meets a need that’s been identified and talked about for some time, and will further strengthen Bristol’s role as the cultural, sporting, and economic centre of our region.
This next step forward in exciting plans for the redevelopment of a sports quarter at Ashton Gate will be another welcome boost for BS3. Like our £11.8 million expansion of Bottle Yard Studios, our award-winning £9 million Advanced Construction Skills Centre, and our world-class £8.4 million Youth Zone, this investment is crucial for South Bristol and the project has my full support.