PLANS to redevelop an old mill site would create almost 12,000 square metres of new industrial space in Bradford.

The old Fairweather Green Mills site on Thornton Road has been empty for over two decades – despite several proposals to develop the land.

The site actually has foundations for four homes – part of one of the stalled regeneration schemes.

But now a new planning application to build 17 industrial units on the site has been submitted to Bradford Council by Fairweather Developments Ltd.

The plans say the development would provide a range of improvements to the local area.

Fairweather Green Mills was one of the city’s many textile mills until it shut in 1999.

The buildings were demolished in the preceding years, and the site is currently overgrown. Last summer the applicants were granted planning permission to erect a fence around the site to stop fly-tipping.

The application is made up of a full planning application for seven industrial or warehouse units on the Thornton Road side of the site, and an outline planning application for a further 10 units further into the site.

The units would range in size from 200 square metres to 2,890 square metres.

There would be parking for 130 cars.

The site backs on to Middle Brook, and the application says a number of riverside trees will be planted as part of the development.

The application says: “The delivery of employment on this site will produce a range of employment opportunities and workforce skills which can provide improvements to the local economy.

“In turn, the development will have a positive impact on the local services and amenities, supplementing the residential and retail uses nearby with employment, to deliver a sustainable environment.

“The ecological value and the proximity of the site to the brook and surrounding trees provide an excellent opportunity for biodiversity enhancement.

“Generous peripheral landscaping buffer and green buffers between buildings will extend wildlife corridors and habitat network throughout the site.

“The economic, social and environmental net gain for the site at Thornton Road provides an opportunity to deliver a much needed and highly sustainable development that will complement and expand the scope of employment within the area.

“The development proposes to reuse land that was originally used for employment, and provides links with the surrounding employment land.

“The space is spread out over an indicative 17 buildings to attract a wide range of businesses and employers to the area.”

A decision on the application is expected in May.