Support needed for regeneration – Bloxham
URBAN Splash chairman Tom Bloxham has warned that progress made in revitalising city centres could stall or even reverse if there is no determined push from the centre.
He was speaking at the topping out ceremony for the Parade building at the firm’s Saxton development in Leeds made possible in part by £16m of investment by the Homes and Communities Agency.
Mr Bloxham said: “Development funding is very very difficult at the moment which makes bringing new things on tricky.
“I don’t seen any signs of development funding easing, I think its very hard to come by and speculative development funding is almost impossible outside London.”
Mr Bloxham pointed to the work of Lord Heseltine on urban regeneration in the 1980s and the urban taskforce led by Lord Rogers as examples of how Governments had taken a key role in city centre development.
“Over the last 20 years there has been a huge change in our towns and cities. If you look at Leeds and Sheffield they have been transformed.
“I think there is a real danger if that doesn’t continue we will see a stop or even a reversal of the gains we have made over the last few years. Although city centres have been done, there is a donut around the centres in
cities like Leeds and Sheffield where more regeneration work needs to be done.”
Parade is the second of two blocks of former council flats that Urban Splash is developing in the Richmond Hill area of Leeds with the first, Drive, almost completely sold or let.
Jonathan Morgan, managing director of property agents Morgans, was among the guests attending the event and said supply was failing to keep up with demand for rental property.
“I think there’s a mindset of uncertainty around the Government, the Spending Review, what the housing market is doing and ultimately that is making people short termist.”
He said that the model of large schemes was likely to see fewer developers seeking off-plan sales and more focus on retaining and renting properties alongside increasing investment from institution
