Hertfordshire LEP, Hertfordshire County Council, and Hertfordshire Infrastructure & Planning Partnership (HIPP) commissioned Markides Associates in 2019 to develop a strategy and action plan for the key employment sites in the county.
This work builds on the Loss of Employment Space in Hertfordshire (2019) report by Lambert Smith Hampton, which found that seven million sq. ft. of employment space has been lost in the county over the last 10 years.
Markides has identified 17 key employment sites across the county, while recognising that there are many other locations, including town centres, that are also important to Hertfordshire's economy. Having analysed historic and future demand trends, Markides has identified possible interventions that could be applied to these sites, tailored to each site's specific needs. These include:
- Masterplanning and capacity studies on emerging sites, and those capable of expansion
- Densification and placemaking to improve the offer on established sites
- Promotion of sectorisation and clustering where this is not strong
- Creating a strong identity and promoting marketability
- Improved accessibility especially for non-car modes
- Providing bluegreen (i.e. ‘building with nature’ such as storm-water management, biodiversity) infrastructure
- Promoting knowledge exchange/networking e.g. through innovation centres
- Plug into the zeitgeist – full fibre/5G/Artificial Intelligence (AI)/green jobs
The new Hertfordshire Key Employment Sites (2020) strategy and action plan will be used to inform future interventions and investment decisions by the LEP and other partners.