A property developer’s labour of love has seen a former pottery works rise from the ashes to become a gateway employment site in Stoke-on-Trent.
Mark Milner, owner of Kirkland Properties, has spent the last 10 years re-developing the Phoenix Works site in Longton – and transforming it into a business and retail hub.
Since 2009 Mark has invested more than £1 million into the 40,000 square-foot site which is now home to six growing businesses.
Today Phoenix Works boasts eight commercial units and a handful of successful businesses including a Portmeirion Pottery factory outlet, the Period Property Store, Yes Lease and the Glost House cafe.
The latest work to be completed at the site is an outdoor seating area which has been created at the central courtyard.
But the father-of-one’s work is far from over – with plans to develop a replica site at Phoenix Works over the next 10 years.
The proposals – which are the second phase of the development project – will see Mark transform the remaining 20,000 square-foot of derelict land to make way for another mixed-use development.
Mark, who lives in Newcastle-under-Lyme, said: “My wife and I used to live in Spain, but we returned to the 海角视频 about 11 years ago and that’s when the work on the site really started.
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“It was a risk and it took a while for us to see a return on our investment, but I really saw the potential.
“I knew it would take a lot of hard work because it was in a very poor condition and the size of the site meant it was very under-utilised.
“We completely reinstated the cobbled courtyard and installed new windows and frontages to create individual units and more importantly, we created a car park.
“We attracted our first tenants about six years ago.”
The Phoenix Works site was built by Thomas Forester in 1881. It was once home to a community of small potbanks and became a major producer of Maiolica pottery.
The site was bought by the Milner family in 1961 before most of the trade ceased in the 1980s and 1990s.
Mark said: “When we took over this site there was about 20 or 30 little pottery companies which all made their own products, it was brilliant.
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“But over the years, the businesses disappeared and the buildings fell into disrepair.
“So a lot of the money that we have spent has been on things you can’t necessarily see, such as making sure the buildings are structurally safe.
“But we have been careful to try and preserve the original features and the character of the buildings as much as we can.”
“The vision I had when we first started this project is exactly what we have created here” added Mark “If we left it it would have deteriorated further and further to the point of no return, so I am really pleased to have been able to transform it into a hub for businesses.”
As well as his future development plans, Mark now wants to open up the Phoenix Works site as a space for fund-raising events, art exhibitions and even theatre productions.
He added: “Over the last 12 months we have taken a bit of a step back and consolidated the work that we have done. At the moment we have two vacant units, so we are focusing on attracting new tenants.
“But we have got all of the permissions in place to start developing the bottle oven area – which is about 6,000 square foot – into usable office space, and then we will move onto the second stage – the other courtyard.
“In the short term though, I would like to see charities and community organisations make use of the site for events and local exhibitions.
“We want to raise awareness of Phoenix Works and have a lovely, unique space available for people who need it, so its a win-win.”