Blackpool makes moves to enable Silicon Sands

Plans have been submitted to relocate a vehicle search point and administrative facility a smidgen closer to the Blackpool Airport runway, enabling development to come forward on the ambitious data centre cluster.

Silicon Sands is Blackpool Council’s 50-acre campus project, which will seek to become a base for a series of data centres and the companies that benefit from proximity to them.

The masterplan, developed by Cassidy + Ashton and WSP, includes ambitions for a district heat network to reuse heat generated from the data centres, provision for 50MVA of renewable energy, and the utilisation of liquid immersion cooling technology that will enable data centres to be more energy efficient.

Launched at UKREiiF, Blackpool Council said Silicon Sands had already secured a robust level of interest from potential developers and occupiers.

Moving these two buildings at the airport is the next step in enabling Silicon Sands to move forward, as they sit within the development’s future site boundary.

Plans drawn up by Cassidy + Ashton and submitted to Fylde Council call for constructing a 2,300 sq ft temporary modular building by the Blackpool Airport runway to house both the vehicle search point and administrative facilities. The two buildings these services currently occupy would then be taken down, with the resulting plot staying as hardstanding (with possible use as a car park) until Silicon Sands’ plans progress further.

By putting both buildings into one will present an improved service offering for arrivals and departures, as well as a larger security checkpoint. This would enable the airport to handle up to 45 passengers at a time.

“This is a major step forward in the future of Blackpool Airport,” said Steve Peters, managing director of the airport.

“Over the last five years, we’ve done a lot of work internally to make Blackpool an attractive airport once again, and we’re seeing the rewards of that with increased corporate and executive aircraft flights accommodating larger cabin class aircraft, and welcoming new customers to the airport for the first time,” he continued.

“This new facility will allow us to grow these executive flights by numbers of movements and increased aircraft size by offering more space as well as improved security, while a new building will provide a modern and welcoming environment that is more suitable as a first impression for departing or arriving visitors.”

Blackpool has more plans in place to improve infrastructure at the airport, including a soon-to-be-decided application for a new road and hangars and forthcoming plans for a solar farm, executive hangars, and possible fuel farm.

When these administrative buildings have been relocated and the future hangars built (enabling their current ones to be razed), the 50 acres for Silicon Sands will be effectively unlocked.

Cllr Mark Smith, Blackpool Council’s cabinet member for levelling up, spoke about the challenges of upgrading the airport while keeping it operational and enabling future developments.

“It is a complex task to redesign a working airport while keeping it fully operational and that can’t happen overnight,” Smith said.

“As a council, we are very keen to protect and grow the airport as a thriving transport hub and a community asset, but that needs to be done in a fashion which is economically sound and accounted for.”

Regarding this particular application, Smith said: “These plans would give the airport more scope to attract new business and customers, which is crucial to its success. In turn, it allows us to nurture the growth of the airport, while also releasing unneeded land for high-end data centre companies to invest in Silicon Sands and create well-paid jobs for local people.

Silicon Sands is just one aspect of the wider Blackport Airport Enterprise Zone, which aims to attract more than 280 businesses and create 5,000 jobs by 2041. Target occupants for the enterprise zone include companies in the aviation, energy, creative, digital, advanced manufacturing, professional services, and food and drink manufacturing sectors. The enterprise zone is already halfway to its job goals – with 2,500 jobs already having been created.

You can learn more about Blackpool Council’s plans for the building relocation by searching application reference number 24/0435 on Fylde Council’s planning portal.