A 3D model of a £400 million regeneration scheme went on display.

About 70 residents and business representatives went to the Gateway Community Centre in Rushenden to find out more about the Queenborough and Rushenden regeneration masterplan, which was formally adopted by Swale council.

Visitors also had the opportunity to talk to the partners involved in the project, which includes 2,000 homes, two million square feet of employment space, new healthcare and education facilities, a marina and new public open spaces.

The scheme, which is led by South East England Development Agency (SEEDA) in partnership with Kent County Council and Swale council, could also create about 3,000 jobs.

Neil Miller, project manager with SEEDA, said: “Now the masterplan and all the various detailed studies are complete we can start to bring forward the first phase of the residential development which will be opened in 2011 by the completion of the Rushenden Relief Road.”

Tom Allsworth, managing director of Medichem International, visited the open day.

He said: “The development opens up lots of opportunities for us as a business looking to expand in future.

“The new road will make such a big difference to people who live and work in the town.”

The Island’s Tory parliamentary candidate, Gordon Henderson, was at the open day and raised his concerns about whether the number of proposed dwellings would rise to more than 2,000.

He said: “A number of local residents have expressed concerns about the number of dwellings planned for the area because they are worried that the development will change the very nature of historic Queenborough and that the Island’s existing infrastructure might be unable to support such a large housing estate.

“I pointed out to the representatives from SEEDA that the original master plan, which was published less than five years ago, was for a marina development of 850 dwellings.

“Since then the figure has increased to over 2,000 homes.”