AN application for a �20 million redevelopment of the former Fisons site in Bramford is due to be discussed by planners next spring.

The application was submitted to Mid Suffolk council in October and has now been formally validated by the district’s planning officers.

That means there are 18 weeks before it has to be discussed by the council’s planning committee.

The application is for the comprehensive redevelopment of the former fertiliser factory – and includes the largest single listed building in Suffolk.

Property development company Paper Mill Lane Properties has submitted the plans for the 12 acre site which includes proposals for 65,000 square feet of office space and 176 new homes.

The application follows a public consultation undertaken by the company earlier this year, in which the developer invited local residents and businesses to have their say about proposals to redevelop the mainly redundant brownfield site.

The Grade II listed North Warehouse, one of the world’s first chemical fertiliser factories, will be converted into a business centre with 20 offices and workshops, which when fully occupied will create up to 267 new jobs.

The new business centre will be suitable for a mix of small to medium sized businesses, with the commercial units ranging in size from 320 to 3,200 square feet. The remaining parts of the building will be converted into three shops, a caf� and apartments.

The application includes the creation of a new cycleway and footpath across the open land between the Ipswich to Norwich railway line and the River Gipping to improve the links between the new community and Bramford village and enable better access for cyclists and people with limited mobility.

Paul Foster, Paper Mill Lane Properties’ planning consultant said: “These plans will create an exciting new commercial, retail and residential hub, which will be of great economic benefit for the Bramford area by creating new homes and jobs.

If approval is given, the company hopes to start construction in late 2013 with the business centre opening in 2015.