Business column: What next for Yorkshire’s brownfield sites and housing needs in Yorkshire?

This week’s announcement that the Government has launched a new £60m fund for councils to unlock parcels of disused and unloved land across Yorkshire and beyond is a welcome move.

It is expected to trigger a hundred new regeneration projects, according to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities and is the second phase of the Brownfield Release Fund.

The money will transform previously developed land into beautiful and thriving neighbourhoods in local authority areas including Darlington, Hull, Kirklees, Rotherham and Sheffield, we are told.

Derelict car parks, industrial sites and town centre buildings which have fallen into disrepair will all benefit from the publically available funding, in the latest signal of Government intent to deliver housing on brownfield, rather than “concreting over our precious countryside.”

So far, so good. But the emphasis shouldn’t all be on local and central government to deliver on these bold housing pledges in isolation.

What we need is innovative thinking and strong public-private partnerships to make sure the best quality homes are built on eyesore brownfield sites where they’re most needed. We need entrepreneurial housing developers, funders and local authorities to work in lockstep to provide innovative schemes which really meet the ambitions of home-buyers.

And there are plenty of opportunities in Yorkshire. Together’s own analysis using valuation data from development site sourcing specialists Searchland, shows the potential for 175,602 new homes in the county, with a potential development value of £53.2billion.

This highlights the immense potential for the region to not only address Yorkshire’s housing shortages but to also for developers and investors with real vision to breathe new life into communities, revitalising Yorkshire’s landscapes.

There are already some impressive projects underway. The £500m South Bank regeneration scheme in Leeds, for example; its ultimate aim to double the size of the city centre by providing places to live and work in the thriving metropolis. In Sheffield, Kelham Island, once the heart of the city’s steel manufacturing industry, has become a thriving hub of community activity with homes, offices, restaurants and bars now replacing the wasteland where the city’s forges once stood.

The visionary thinking behind these schemes should be applauded. They should be replicated in other areas of the region and across the UK to maximise the potential of available land.

However, the complex nature of brownfield sites brings with them an inevitable increased spend on remediation and other environmental issues. Making sure this available brownfield land is economically viable for developers and lenders could prove just one barrier to innovative place-making. Planning application delays have held up schemes – leading to some leading projects being abandoned altogether.

Converting empty shops and other commercial buildings into homes, following the relaxation of some planning constraints in recent years, has also led to concerns of poor quality housing. So it’s important that developers adhere to planning and building standards and safeguards when delivering homes for those who most need them.

There will continue to be a dire shortage of housing in Yorkshire’s towns and cities – and this situation is unlikely to be solved overnight. There is no magic bullet. But brownfield sites could certainly provide part of the solution; levelling up in the regions by delivering growth and prosperity for future generations.

This is a paid for first-person business column opinion piece from Michael Devanny at Together, and does not necessarily reflect the view of the Yorkshire Post. Find more information and analysis at https://togethermoney.com/