A MILESTONE has been reached in the development of the former Consett Steelworks site .

The approval of plans for 46 homes in the town signals the start of another of many growing estates in the Derwentside district.

But the building work by George Wimpey at Genesis Way, also marks an important step in the development of the site.

For the plans will see the demolition of the last remaining steelworks building on the site - the former generator now known as Generation House - and it is likely to be the last major housing project there.

Seen by community leaders as a vote of confidence in the area, the new buildings form part of a wider patchwork of development, which has breathed new life into the steelworks site.

Derwentside District Council leader Coun Alex Watson said: "We had earmarked land for just over 500 houses on the site and really we have now reached that target, with the latest development bringing it up to 457 homes."

It was all a different story in 1981, when the whole district was devastated by the closure of the steelworks, with the loss of up to 9,000 jobs.

There followed an exodus of up to 20,000 people from the district.

The steelworks were demolished over the next three years, and for ten years the council harboured all sorts of ambitions for the area.

Coun Watson said: "During that incubation period we looked for partners to get things moving with the private sector.

"We found that to access grants we would have to set up a charitable trust."

The council teamed up with Dysart, the company behind the Newcastle Business Park, which had attracted £150m worth of investment and 4,500 jobs.

It led to the launch in 1993 of Project Genesis, with a design brief for an area of about 700 acres.

Coun Watson said: "What we were looking for was a plan which was sustainable and took the environment into account.

"After the pollution of the steelworks, with its red clouds of dust, we wanted something different, and it has become the first truly green development and the biggest in Europe at that."

The steelworks left its legacy of contaminants and the Genesis project had been given £9.6m to reclaim the site.

Removing the slagheaps was not possible, so housing has been kept to the periphery of the site - enjoying outstanding and very marketable views over the Derwent Valley.

Among the housing developments which have already been built have been 50 homes at Phoenix Court, Blackhill, 77 homes by Miller Homes at Hall Cottages and 20 homes by Northern Housing Association in Victoria Street, Berry Edge, Consett.

In August 2003, Barratts started building 125 executive homes in Berry Edge in Consett.

The company, working with civil engineering contractor and consultants Hellens Contracts and White Young Green, spent £1.8m decontaminating the site.

The company angered residents when it sent in contractors to cut up a giant crucible used in the smelting process that had stood on the site for more than 120 years.

It had looked into hiring a crane to move it, but found it would cost about £220,000. Instead it agreed to clean and mount the remaining, smaller crucible at a cost of more than £20,000.

Project Genesis has now secured permission for 79 high quality properties on land south-west of Knitsley Gardens, Templetown.

This development had attracted opposition from residents, who did not want to lose the recreation area, which was to be replaced by one only half the size. Workers are due to move on to the site in May.

The Wimpey development, while on the former site, is not part of Genesis.

Apart from housing there have been a range of other developments, including the new Derwentside College, Steel House, McDonald's Restaurant and International Cuisine, with 500 jobs.

Several factories have also sprung up on the periphery.

Only two weeks ago work began on the new Innovation Centre built for the Derwentside Industrial Development Agency at Pond's Court.

There are also plans on the drawing board for a £14m wet and dry sports centre, a hotel complex and an Italian restaurant.

Project Genesis managing director Morris Muter said: "While progress may seem to have been slow, much has been achieved to date.

"We now have renewed interest from various quarters which would allow new initiatives which we are working on to come to fruition."