Eco-town to 'transform' clay pit area
Swiss firm Orascom Development yesterday made its first significant public statement on how it plans to turn former mining land around St Austell into a desirable waterfront location with strong green credentials.
The village of West Carclaze and the area around the redundant Baal clay pit, currently separated by the A391, are to form the heart of a new town of around 2,000 homes.
Orascom also has ambitious plans to turn the industrial Par docks nearby into a luxury waterside marina. It intends to submit a planning application for both developments by the end of next year.
At a press conference yesterday, Samih Sawiris, chief executive of Orascom Development, said this was the first phase in a "20, 30, 40-year plan".
He hinted at the area, blighted by low wages, being overhauled in a swirl of new hotels, high-earning incomers and affordable homes.
To give the community a taste of what is to come, Orascom intends to build up to 80 "trial and error" show homes that demonstrate the "concepts of eco-town living".
Asked how the town would live up to the "eco" billing, Mr Sawiris talked about the possibility employing geothermal technology to heat homes and an antipathy towards carbon-producing vehicles, paving the way for the electric-powered cars and buses.
He said the homes would range wildly in price, stating that both the "guy on less than £50,000" and "the guy that has £5 million" will both find a place in the soon-to-be-named town. "If you can cater for both then you are doing well," he said, adding that he wanted the town to be neither a retirement hot spot nor a "little Ibiza".
Asked whether the eco-town would be dominated by second-home owners, Mr Sawiris said "we will not allow it", adding that a "certain number" will only ever be allowed to be owned by local people.
Eventually, the town could be big enough to sustain 5,000 homes, projections have suggested, and in turn support 5,000 jobs.
The first stage is about creating the centre of the town out of which a much bigger community, and more profitable properties, will grow.
Mr Sawiris admitted the plans would likely cause a "lively debate", but that the town "would not work unless we listen to criticism, whether founded or unfounded".
Orascom is working on the joint venture with Cornish china clay firm Imerys, which has more than 700 hectares of land available for regeneration.
Boasting high-spec developments in Egypt and the United Arab Emirates, Orascom is tweaking the model it developed for an eco-town in Switzerland.
In July, the Government gave the St Austell project eco-town status, which meant it will be able to bid for a share of £60 million in public cash for local infrastructure.
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