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As part of the land assembly for the campus, the council has been negotiating with property owners to buy their properties.
Blackpool Council’s Executive committee is being recommended to agree powers that would allow the council to begin the process to compulsory purchase any remaining properties, so they can be cleared to make way for the Multiversity campus.
The properties are on land bounded by Cookson Street, Milbourne Street, George Street and Grosvenor Street and are a mixture of residential and businesses. Negotiations with all properties started in 2022.
Once made, the compulsory purchase order would allow the council to acquire the remaining properties and clear the site ready for construction. The authority to compulsory purchase is a necessary step in assembling the land, but negotiations with owners who are engaging with the council will continue unchanged. Completion of the compulsory purchase and vacating of those properties is unlikely to happen until next year.
Cllr Lynn Williams, Leader of Blackpool Council, said: “The Multiversity development is another major project in our redevelopment of the area around Blackpool North train station, which will bring thousands more people into the town centre, majorly boosting our local economy and creating new jobs.
“This development is game changing in terms of our plans to make Blackpool better, but we do very clearly understand the impact on people living in the properties we’re buying, we are buying their homes. I want to reassure them that we will continue to support any tenants or residents who have to move as a result , and nobody will be asked to move out without reasonable warning and support to find somewhere else suitable to live.
“We have also provided an advice service separate to those negotiating to buy the properties and they are available to be contacted for by any residents affected who have questions regarding the sale or support in finding a new home and this support will continue.
“As well as regenerating the area, the Multiversity will also create a world class education campus for Blackpool and the Fylde College to train up our local people with high quality skills and qualifications that will prepare them for the future world of work and have a positive impact on our town.”
The Multiversity will provide a state of the art university level campus as part of the £350m Talbot Gateway development, bringing up to 3,000 staff and students into Blackpool town centre. It supports other current Talbot Gateway developments under construction, including the 144 bedroom Holiday Inn and the Civil Service Hub, which will bring an additional 3,500 professional workers to the area.
The Multiversity development allows Blackpool and the Fylde College to replace out of town centre facilities on Park Road with a world-class state-of-the-art campus in the town centre. In addition to bringing more students into the town centre, the Multiversity campus would also allow Blackpool and the Fylde College to offer more than 70 individual courses, enhancing its existing higher education provision which is directly linked to local employment needs.
Alun Francis, Principal and Chief Executive at Blackpool and The Fylde College said: “Multiversity will genuinely transform the opportunities for people in Blackpool and on the Fylde coast, helping to deliver a highly skilled workforce. It will combine the very best of higher and technical and professional education in one campus, with curriculum completely aligned with the growing opportunities across Lancashire and the North West.
“Multiversity aims to be the country’s first carbon neutral Higher Education campus and we fully intend it to be a landmark building as part of the redevelopment of Blackpool town centre. This is one of the best things to happen to Blackpool for a generation.”
The Multiversity project was awarded £9m as part of Blackpool Town Deal in March 2022 to buy the properties and assemble the land.
The project was also awarded £40m as part of the government’s Levelling Up funding in January 2023 as part of a £56m build, creating a total project cost of £65m.
Designs for the Multiversity are being worked up and an outline planning application for the site is expected to be submitted later this year.
More details on regeneration plans in Blackpool