Citu partners with Scandinavians for £125m Innovation District showcase
Sustainable developer Citu is partnering with Swedish architects White Arkitekter to showcase its £125m zero-carbon Climate Innovation District at MIPIM 2017 in Cannes.
Leeds-based Citu announced plans for the city centre site in May 2016, with the aim of replicating Scandinavian living in the UK.
Citu is taking part in a MIPIM event to reveal more on its ‘pioneering’ development in the Northern Powerhouse.
It says it will “draw on an holistic approach to place-making which has made Scandinavian countries world-leaders in creating sustainable, low carbon neighbourhoods”.
Company founder and managing director Chris Thompson and development director Jonathan Wilson will present at White Arkitekter’s event ‘Wooden it be nice’ on Wednesday 15 March at the Stockholm Business Region Development stand.
The Climate Innovation District will include 530 new low carbon homes with timber framing which is manufactured at a permanent on-site manufacturing facility at ‘Citu Works’.
The homes will include rainwater and stormwater collection as part of an urban drainage system; solar panels; green roofs and green surfaces to increase amenity, biodiversity and reduce flood risk and overheating, and a specialist ventilation system which also reduces heat loss.
This is alongside manufacturing, leisure, offices and climate-resilient public realm in the heart of the city’s landmark South Bank Leeds regeneration project.
The first residential phase of the Climate Innovation District is already on site with the first homes due to be completed by autumn this year.
Keith Boxer, architect and director of innovation and sustainability from White: “The value and investment in Scandinavian cities is driven by the appreciation of well-being for the individual. We develop solutions that consider the present population of all ages and future generations.
“With these principles in mind, we created our own Life Cycle Analysis tool which allows us to calculate the carbon footprint of a building, not only when in use but also through its full life cycle from construction to demolition. We’ve used this tool to inform the design of the Climate Innovation District, helping the Citu team to create a well-connected community and to realise their ambitions for a zero-carbon footprint development.”
Chris Thompson, managing director and founder of Citu: “I’ve seen first-hand the benefits of taking a Scandinavian approach to place-making in helping create sustainable neighbourhoods that can withstand climate change and will outlive our generation, and the next. Working alongside White and our partners, including the Leeds City Region Enterprise Partnership (LEP), Leeds City Region Revolving Investment Fund (RIF) and local universities, we hope to make Leeds the first city in the UK to offer an ecologically pioneering district of this scale.
“This year’s MIPIM event allows us to showcase the potential of the Climate Innovation District to the property industry, and continue our mission to inspire future place-makers across the country to make a low-carbon future a reality now.”
Roger Marsh OBE, chairman of Leeds City Region Enterprise Partnership: “Each year the Leeds City Region delegation to MIPIM has grown and I am delighted that CITU is here with us this year as part of our largest ever delegation. With an economic output approaching £65bn and the largest and fastest growing workforce in the UK, Leeds City Region is at the economic heart of the Northern Powerhouse.
“As a city region where the best businesses in the world can grow and succeed, sustainable growth lies at the heart of our Strategic Economic Plan and the low carbon homes Citu is constructing in the landmark South Bank Leeds scheme can only enhance our status as the country’s most attractive place to live and work.”
