Online retail giant Amazon could be set to open a huge new distribution centre near Hull, potentially creating hundreds of jobs.
Plans have been submitted to East Riding of Yorkshire Council to build a modular warehouse and office accommodation on a site at the Melton West business park off the A63.
The application has been submitted by Hull-based Wykeland Group, the business park’s owners.
Although the application does not identify a potential end user, there is speculation that Amazon is being lined up to move in, though the regional property heavyweight said it had nothing further to add to the submission.
The size, lay-out and intended operation at the facility all fit with the online retailer’s business model.
The proposed lay-out of the 15.8-acre site includes a main warehouse with a total gross floorspace of 8,193 sq m - slightly larger than the pitch at the KCOM Stadium.
In addition, there will be 367 parking spaces for what are described as “light goods vehicles and public carrier vehicles” with 20 per cent of the spaces equipped with electric charging points.
There are also proposals for a separate 172-space car park for staff.
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As yet, there is no indication of how many jobs could be created at the complex if it gets the go-ahead. Sites range between 40 and several hundred people, with the car park suggesting it could be towards the top end.
The site on Monks Way West lies opposite the Sandpiper pub and restaurant near the main entrance to the business park and extends south towards the main Hull to Doncaster railway line.
Two access junctions onto Brickyard Lane would be used as part of the distribution centre’s operation.
Unusually, the application is only seeking temporary permission to operate the modular warehouse for a 12-month period.
However, a planning statement by scheme architects SMR included in the application says: “This application seeks permission for a temporary period of one year, after which the modular warehouse and ancillary offices would be removed and replaced with a permanent, built-to-suit warehouse.
“The proposals for the permanent facility are currently being developed and will be the subject of a future application for planning permission to be submitted in due course.
“In the interim, the temporary facility is required to meet the identified occupier’s urgent need for a last-mile distribution facility to serve the local area in the current year.”
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It adds: “The applicant has identified an occupier for the proposed development, who proposes to use it as a ‘last mile’ distribution facility, where parcels are delivered via small vans to customers in the local area.
“At present, redistribution is undertaken by drivers owning their own vans for the most part.
“However, the occupier is looking to substantially enhance the number of its own fleet and to consolidate operations on one site.
“This has resulted in the current proposal for the van storage area, which occupies the south-western portion of the site. This area will accommodate the van fleet overnight while the drivers are not out on deliveries.”
The statement concludes: “The proposal demonstrates a positive push for the growth of business within the Melton West industrial estate.
“The development will provide new connections within the community and aid in the regional and national connections the end user operates within.
“The developed site will meet requirements for generating local employment and investing back into the industrial and business communities.”
Amazon currently operates 16 distribution centres across the 海角视频, although the online retailer describes them as ‘fulfilment centres’.
The nearest centre is in Doncaster.
The distribution sector’s so-called ‘last mile’ is not strictly a mile but refers to the final leg of a parcel’s journey and the associated problems involved, from local traffic congestion to deliveries arriving at unoccupied addresses.