A BARREN old industrial site is to be transformed into plush office accommodation to attract new businesses to Inverclyde.

Riverside Inverclyde (RI) regeneration bosses have unveiled plans to improve the Cartsburn/Cartsdyke area opposite the RBS mortgage centre, in the hope that top firms will be attracted to Inverclyde due to lower rental costs than Glasgow.

Meanwhile, the Tele can reveal that the iconic Custom House building is already filling up with new firms wanting to base their businesses there.

Councillor David Wilson, who is RI interim chairman, says work to the east wing of the iconic building will be complete by the end of the year and it is already fully pre-let to firms.

Three other companies from outwith Inverclyde have also shown an interest in taking up space in the west wing.

Councillor Wilson, who recently toured RI’s property portfolio hopes that 2014 will see the company move on from the well-documented turbulent times it has experienced this year.

He said: “Riverside Inverclyde is alive and kicking and Inverclyde is most certainly open for business.

“There is every cause for optimism that the facilities Riverside Inverclyde has created, and more importantly, is still creating will facilitate employment growth in Inverclyde”.

The councillor highlighted the Riverside Business Park which has become home for companies like Cigna, IBM, 2020 Renewables, Devlin Corporation, Goltens, Jenda Energy and Toltec, alongside social enterprise and creative industry companies in the nearby Ladyburn Business Centre.

Councillor Wilson said: “Riverside Inverclyde’s foresight in creating Riverside Business Park, with its high-quality office accommodation, nursery and bistro, has not only created jobs in the area but also safeguarded jobs that could have been lost to Inverclyde.

“The successful formula of speculative build of quality accommodation has contributed to Inverclyde’s physical and economic transformation.

“This previously derelict area is now the business home of hundreds of people, and what a difference it makes to the environment of the A8 corridor, showcasing successful Inverclyde initiatives”.

Councillor Wilson also hopes that RI’s commitment to providing space for industrial use in Port Glasgow will pay off for the area.

He said: “We have high hopes for the speculative industrial units Riverside Inverclyde is building at Kelburn industrial estate, with one of the buildings already attracting interest from an out of town company keen to move to Inverclyde and be part of the area’s regeneration.

“These buildings will also be completed by the end of this year.

“We shouldn’t forget that we have also made transformational upgrades to our Lynedoch and Drumfrochar industrial estates, which have a high occupancy rate.”