Canalside Developments, which owns Ripon Business Park, on the B6265 Boroughbridge Road, is seeking planning permission to develop a further 25,000 sq ft of land for light industrial and warehousing use.

It is currently used by Econ Engineering to store its 900-strong gritter hire fleet, which from next year will move to a new site, at Sowerby, near Thirsk.

Canalside Developments launched Ripon Business Park in 2004, and it is now home to a number of long established businesses in 19 units, including Bill Plant School of Motoring and NFU Mutual.

Work on phase two, is due to start this summer. Once complete the business park’s footprint will increase by 50 per cent.

Jonathan Lupton, Canalside Developments director and operations director at Econ Engineering, said there was already a considerable amount of interest in the scheme.

He said: “There is a shortage of good quality, small-scale industrial units in the district, and this is what we will be helping to address with phase two of Canalside Business Park.

“When our MP, Julian Smith, recently visited Econ, I was delighted to tell him about our plans for increasing the business park, and he was particularly interested in hearing it could generate up to 80 jobs.”

He added: “The current site has 19 units, which house a variety of different businesses, and when completed, another 16 will be added, taking the total number to 35.

“I’m pleased to say there has already been a considerable amount of interest in the scheme.”

Ripon Business Park phase two is being marketed by Feathers Smailes and Scales.