PLANS have been submitted to start the transformation of the former Richard Read (Transport) depot into a multi-million pound business park.

Part of the 12.46-acre site fronting on to the A4136 Monmouth Road in Longhope has been targeted for 10 new business units and an extra 32 parking spaces.

The site belonging to one of the Forest’s oldest businesses was sold to Gloucestershire investors Dr Roger Head OBE and Jim Ruddy after Richard Read announced its closure last March after 73 years trading.

And a year on, Head Ruddy Ltd has now submitted a first stage scheme to Forest planners for its proposed Longhope Business Park.

A report submitted in support of the application says: “The objective of the proposal is to obtain permission to extend and upgrade the buildings at the former transport facility with the provision of a mix of units to create a local business hub for Longhope and the surrounding area.

“The road frontage element provides a new public face to the site which will raise the profile and improve the visual appeal.”

If approved, six new units would be created along the road frontage alongside the current building, while another four new units would be provided in the main body of the site in a new metal clad standalone building.

The look of existing roadside buildings will also be improved, says the report.

“The frontage element will continue the theme of the existing building with a series of gabled forms with a similar eaves height for each unit,” it adds.

“The wall cladding will be full height and a combination of flat panel and profiled sheeting to give a more ‘business park’ aesthetic rather than an industrial one.”

Planting zones are also proposed for shrubs, while parking spaces will be increased from 30 to 62.

The whole site acquired by Head Ruddy contains 70,000 sq ft of warehousing and industrial units and office space, plus 5.32 acres of expansion land which already has outline planning consent for commercial uses, plus a detached three storey, five-bedroom residential property.

Family firm Richard Read blamed disappointing financial results in 2018 due to “shrinking margins and a rising overhead” for its decision to close.

Richard Read and his wife Amelia bought their first truck in 1946 for £350 to haul stone to build the Gloucester Ring Road, and their trucks went on to become some of the most recognisable in the country.

Richard’s business was influenced by the success of his father who had been hauling since 1913, and he launched his own business when he returned from the Royal Navy after the Second World War.

In 1959, the relationship between British truck manufacturer ERF and Richard Read came into being when they bought their first articulated tractor unit, and during the 1960s Richard and Amelia ran a fleet of 87 vehicles.

As well as general haulage, the firm provided warehousing, with 146,000sq ft of storage space spread across two sites in Cinderford and Longhope.

It also developed a heavy vehicle recovery service, as well as an ATF facility and Richard Read Commercials, a MAN truck sales, parts and service centre.

Hundreds of tributes from family, friends and former employees were paid to Richard when he died in 2014 aged 89, just months after his wife’s passing.