Fears plan for crumbling mills will be 'unviable'
BBCCampaigners have said they fear plans to save the crumbling Belper Mills in Derbyshire will be too costly to carry out.
The Georgian mills, a key part of the Derwent Valley Mills Unesco World Heritage Site, are in "poor condition" having stood largely derelict for decades.
Roger Moors, chair of Our Belper Mills, said he would be "delighted to see a viable redevelopment started", but was concerned the repair bill could thwart plans to rejuvenate the site.
First Investment Real Estate Management (FI), owners of the site, said plans would be submitted to Amber Valley Borough Council in the coming months, and added it had been "proactively engaging with key stakeholders throughout".
An application for the site to convert the mills into apartments, as well as ground floor commercial uses, was submitted in 2018 but not determined.
Mr Moors, chair of the group, which is part of the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site (DVMWHS) Partnership, said the site was "a blot on the landscape" but was wary that any scheme brought forward needs to not only be respectful of the heritage of the buildings, but also be self-funding.
In 2024, Derbyshire County Council commissioned an independent report on behalf of the DVMWHS, which found the heritage costs would put the overall redevelopment about £20m in the red.
The report found it was "unlikely" any scheme for the North and East Mills buildings could be "delivered by the private sector alone".
Our Belper Mills said FI contested this, as savings would be made by them carrying out most of the restoration work in-house.
FI did not wish to comment on this when approached by the BBC.
Derek Latham, chair of DVMWHS member Derbyshire Historic Buildings Trust, said he was "sceptical" over the redevelopment plans, which he described as "unviable".
"Since 2003 we've tried to put pressure on for basic repairs to be undertaken and they haven't been done," he added.
FI said it was "very proud" to be investing in Belper Mills by developing "a complex proposal" to be submitted later this year.
A spokesperson said: "We are in the process of finalising a revised heritage report with Historic England and have been proactively engaging with key stakeholders throughout.
"The proposals and evidence will then be assessed by Unesco to receive its decision on our plans for Belper Mills, which we hope will happen over the next few months."
The borough council said it would determine the application for "a very important part of our country's industrial heritage".
A spokesperson added: "The council is keen to work closely with the owner to ensure its protection."
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