BOLTON's hidden valley is booming following an injection of City Challenge and private sector cash.

The area behind Blackburn Road, Crompton Way and Tonge Moor Road is being transformed into a major asset for the town.

Progress is visible to anybody who turns off Blackburn Road and drives along the new road which links Waters Meeting Road, near McDonalds, with Simpson Street/Calvin Street, near the Warburton's bakery.

Derelict land has been re-claimed, industrial units have been built, offices have been developed and people are moving in. But the area will not really be on the map for local people until the completion of the exciting Waters Meeting leisure project spearheaded by Bolton City Challenge and its appointed developers, Chester-based THI.

The centre-piece of the multi-million pound complex will be a 3,000-seat cinema for Richard Branson's Virgin Group.

But it will also feature a 40,000 sq ft health and fitness centre and a 25,000 sq ft nightclub, both operated by First Leisure plc.

A waterside pub diner and budget motel are also planned.

It is hoped that by the end of 1997 the leisure site will be providing full or part-time jobs for more than 1,000 people.

All these facilities will be of interest to the local community and also to the business people and workers attracted to the new industrial and commercial buildings being developed nearby.

The first development, the Valley, is now virtually let.

Small units are currently occupied by Valley Foods, Lottis Deli, Scantech Packaging, The Salon Centre, Security Solutions Ltd, Paradise Dairy Ice Cream, European Motor Factors, Tech Motive and Ifits Leather.

About 30 people are involved altogether.

The biggest unit is the new home for Ikon Office Solutions (formerly Erskine's).

There are about 90 staff on the premises together with more than 200 service engineers covering the northern half of the UK.

The Valley is run by Riverside Business Park (Bolton) Ltd, a joint venture company formed recently by contractor-developer William Hargreaves Ltd and Orbit Developments, part of the Cheshire-based Emerson Group.

Orbit is one of the partners involved in the Middlebrook development at Horwich which includes a new home for Bolton Wanderers and a Warner Brothers multiplex cinema. Down in the Tonge valley, William Hargreaves Ltd is also involved in the development of significant units on the Britannia Way industrial sector on the Tonge Moor side of the new bridge built over River Tonge.

One of the units is being developed for Ascot Industrial Doors Ltd of Viola Street, Bolton.

When all the units are let they will accommodate a total of about 250 workers.

"Enquiries are extremely positive," said Kelvin Butterworth, Hargreaves' Development Manager.

Office accommodation is available in the St Peter's Business Park taking shape in Calvin Street, not far from Blackburn Road.

When completed the park will offer 250,000 square feet of high quality office space which will have the potential for creating 1,250 jobs.

One of the completed office units has been let provisionally to the North British Housing Ltd as a new regional office.

Another is a temporary home for City Challenge Marketing Manager David Metcalfe, who is pleased with the interest being shown in the premises being made available.

"It is going extremely well," he said.

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