Member Article

Victoria Gate development brings investment in Leeds region to £2.5 billion

The announcement by Hammerson that Victoria Gate will start in April means that the development and investment pipeline in the Leeds City Region has passed £2.5 billion.

The £150million first phase will bring John Lewis to Leeds for the first time means that there is over £1 billion in retail development on site or in the pipeline - more than anywhere else in Europe.

Led by Leeds and Partners, Investment Week at MIPIM 2014 has seen Bradford, Leeds, Wakefield, York and wider city region partners collaborate to highlight the investor and development potential across the region, as well as showcase the unique investment opportunities that exist.

Some of the key schemes that make up the current development and investment pipeline include;

• Trinity shopping centre, £380 million;
• Westfield Broadway in Bradford, £260 million;
• Victoria Gate, Leeds, £150 million;
• Vangarde, York, £90 million;
• GB Group, Hilton Arena Hotel, Leeds, £32 million;
• First direct Arena, Leeds, £60 million;
• Leeds NGT trolleybus, £250 million;
• Heslington East, University of York £750 million;
• Trinity Walk Shopping Centre, Wakefield, £182 million
• Merchant Gate, Wakefield, £78 million.

Building on the ambition, confidence and capability that the development pipeline has created, the city region was keen to highlight the opportunities that were also being brought to market.

Leeds has focused on the 136 hectare South Bank development and the 142 hectare Aire Valley Enterprise Zone. South Bank is one of the biggest city centre regeneration projects in Europe and has the potential to create 20,000 new jobs and 5,000 new homes on over 250,000sqm of land.

The Aire Valley is one of the biggest regeneration areas in the UK and has already attracted landowners and developers including Muse Developments, Evans, Keyland and Wilton Developments to the strategically important site.

York is promoting unparalleled opportunities including York Central, a groundbreaking mixed use development opportunity next to the rail station, which will create a grade A quality central business district and over 1,000 new homes next to one of the UK’s most desirable city centres.

Across the wider region opportunities include Bradford’s City Centre Growth Zone, the 1.1 hectare former Yorkshire Water site and the Odeon Cinema site, Wakefield’s Civic Quarter and 51 hectare Newmarket distribution and warehousing development.

The city region partners were also keen to highlight the public-private partnerships that are creating the right conditions for investors, with a range of funding options and support, from the £10 million Revolving Investment Fund (RIF), the Business Growth Programme, Enterprise and Growth Zones and the assisted areas status of some of the sites.

Roger Marsh, Chair of the Leeds City Region Enterprise Partnership (The LEP), said: “The level of development that is taking place is a clear demonstration of the confidence that investors have in the city region and we’re looking to build on that.

“As our city region partners bring some of the largest city centre regeneration and investment opportunities in Europe to market, the LEP is committed to harnessing the opportunities that MIPIM provides and unlocking the potential the region has to offer.”

Katie Stewart, Head of Economic Development at City of York Council, said: “This was our second year at MIPIM, following the success of last year’s event and the leads it generated.

“We have found that York’s unique offer, which combines both the city’s quintessentially English heritage and history with a modern, cutting edge knowledge economy, resonates particularly well with the global market and investors, and we look forward to the opportunities that this year’s event will bring.”

Andrew Latchmore, partner at Shulmans, which recently announced it will be occupying MEPC’s new 35,000 sq ft 10 Wellington Place, added: “The scope, scale and ambition of the developments that are taking place across the Leeds City Region are a demonstration of the confidence in the region’s economy and its resilience.

“Alongside retail development, office take-up in Leeds is at a 15-year high, we have a new arena and there is significant investment in infrastructure and public transport, with the £250 million trolleybus. Together these are helping to deliver a vibrant, exciting and distinctive future for the City.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Clare Burnett .