Buyer sought to develop prime city centre site

PLANS to turn a city centre car park into offices, apartments or a hotel are moving forward after the land was put up for sale to potential developers.
The former Yorkshire Water depot on George Street in Bradford city centre could be turned into offices or apartments.The former Yorkshire Water depot on George Street in Bradford city centre could be turned into offices or apartments.
The former Yorkshire Water depot on George Street in Bradford city centre could be turned into offices or apartments.

The 2.59 acre site on George Street, near The Broadway shopping centre in Bradford, originally served as a depot, computer centre and water testing laboratories for Yorkshire Water Services. It is now being marketed by the its sister company, Keyland Developments, as a mixed use development opportunity site.

Occupying a prominent corner location at the junction of Leeds Road and Shipley Airedale Road, the site is 200 metres to the east of The Broadway Shopping Centre and is close to the main transports hubs of Bradford Interchange and Bradford Forster Square.

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More recently, the site has been occupied by Citizen Advice Bureau and Car Parking Management Limited (CPM), a pay and display operator which continues to operate and manage the pay and display car park.

The buildings on site have recently been demolished with foundations removed and services isolated in order to prepare the site for future development of a variety of potential uses, subject to planning.

Ryan Unsworth, development manager at Keyland Developments, said: “We are confident that the time is right to be launching this significant site to market as the regeneration of Bradford city centre continues to go from strength to strength.

“The site had a historic planning consent for a mixed use development which demonstrates that it is suitable for a range of uses which can complement the surrounding amenities.”

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Keyland has appointed the agency teams of BNP Paribas Real Estate and Mark Brearley & Co to market the freehold interest in the land.

Richard Dunhill, from BNP Paribas, said: “This is an excellent opportunity to acquire a well connected site in the heart of Bradford which benefits from surrounding amenities including The Broadway Shopping Centre, which is home to multiple major retailers, the Leisure Exchange, which includes a 16 Screen Cineworld Multiplex Cinema and occupiers such as Grosvenor Casino as well as Hollywood Bowl, Gym4All, and Holiday Inn Express, Pizza Hut, Frankie & Benny’s and Nando’s.”

Mark Brearley, from Mark Brearley & Co, added: “The historic planning consent highlighted approval for commercial, offices, residential and hotel uses, all of which would fit well with the site’s location and linkages today.

“It is fantastic news for the Bradford area that this redundant site can be brought back into use and contribute to the ongoing success of the city.

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“We anticipate high levels of interest from a range of parties and look forward to bringing this important site back to life.”

The site was highlighted in Bradford Council’s city centre Area Action Plan, a 15-year development plan, which was published in 2013.

The council hoped the development would provide a strong landmark feature on the prominent corner site.

It was thought the site could house 100 new homes, 43,00 sq ft of leisure and convenience stores.

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Keyland has operated for more than 20 years developing Yorkshire Water sites. It also prepares large strategic sites for development through joint ventures and works with third party landowners through planning promotional agreements.

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