Historic Bath site sold to developers for £13.8m
Family-owned developer City & Country has acquired 5.3-acre Bath Press development site for £13.8m.
The deal will expand City & Country’s projects across the South West, with their Bristol developments at Factory No.1 and The General located just under 12 miles away.
The developer has also worked on the former prison sites at Dorchester and Gloucester and Burderop Park near Swindon.
While the development will be new-build residential led, the historic façade of the Bath Press site will be retained.
The scheme will include a mix of new-build apartments, houses and office space. The site already has planning permission, with City & Country due to start work as soon as possible.
Simon Marner, City & Country’s Land & Property Director, said: “This is a significant acquisition for the business, with the site due to deliver more than 250 units in addition to the commercial space. Bath is a thriving city, known for its status as a World Heritage Site and a centre of international cultural significance and is an excellent fit for our brand.
“We have ambitious plans for the next five years as a business, as we continue expanding our new build arm and restoring heritage buildings to provide beautiful, modern high-specification homes. As with all our new build homes, we pride ourselves in the quality of our design and the creation of community. Placemaking is at the heart of everything we do, and this site will be no different.”
Dating back to the 1890s, the original Bath Press was home to the Pitman Press printing works, led by Sir Isaac Pitman, who developed one of the world’s most widely used methods of shorthand.
The site became vacant in 2007 and was subsequently demolished between September 2017 and November 2018 to allow for redevelopment.
Residents of the upcoming development will be within walking distance of amenities such as cafes and retail units at Bath Western Riverside and a gym at Spring Wharf. Furthermore, the city centre is accessible via the river footpath, and the Bath Spa railway station is located just over one mile from site, with regular connections to Bristol Temple Meads and London Paddington.
