A development of more than 1,000 homes it to be built on high profile site in Leeds that was home to the city’s first ever railway station.
News has emerged that Cole Waterhouse and Tonia Investments have purchased the 3.8-acre brownfield site in Leeds city centre, currently referred to as ‘Leeds City Village’.
This site sits opposite Quarry Hill in Leeds’ cultural district, and is bounded by Marsh Lane to the west and Shannon Street to the north. It was formerly home to the Marsh Lane Goods Yard.
The Marsh Lane Goods Yard was the site of the Leeds’ first ever railway station in 1834. It has been identified as a development opportunity in Leeds City Council’s development plan.
Planning permission was granted earlier this year for five blocks ranging in height from 12 to 22 storeys, comprising a total of 1,012 apartments.
The joint venture marks the first time that Cole Waterhouse and Tonia Investments have worked in partnership.
Damian Flood, chief executive at Cole Waterhouse, said: “We seek to build developments where placemaking is central to the design to help deliver places that are desirable destinations as well as great places to live.”
Tonia Investment Principal Charlie Qian added: “Tonia is excited to work with Cole Waterhouse. We hope the delivery of this impressive scheme will add to the continued expansion of the City Eastwards. It will provide an acre of new public realm that we hope will complement the success of the neighbouring cultural quarter.”
The JV partnership now aims to progress the scheme with Leeds City Council, with plans for a series of design changes to enhance the residential offering and public realm space.
Proposed revisions to the submitted planning application include adjusting the balance of studio apartments for larger one-bed apartments as well as providing a sharper focus on the communal areas and the overall scheme design. Enhancements to the public realm will seek to address functional improvements that enable better use of outdoor spaces for entertainment, exercise and leisure.
Flood added: “Understanding the area’s culture and the community’s future ambitions is crucial and we will be appointing a local cultural lead to help us shape the scheme to ensure it meets the aspirations of local residents. This community-first approach has been hugely successful for us at other schemes, helping to really connect and engage with the local market from the earliest stage of the development.
“We’re really excited to be working in Leeds at a time when it is undergoing a significant period of transformation and we will be appointing a primarily Yorkshire-based team to deliver the project over the next six years. We will be submitting the revised planning application by the end of 2022 with the intention to start on site as soon as planning is granted.”