Resilience needed as the sector struggles

I am a positive person and the property market has been tough and very patchy for four years now. My view is that we are at the bottom and will bump along for some time yet until liquidity and confidence return. That said, there are good buying opportunities out there for those with money to spend and clearly some locations and sectors will perform better than others.

Importantly, I think we need to continue to be resilient, sensible and try and not worry too much about things that we cannot influence. Some businesses are doing well and need to expand, it would be very unfortunate if as an industry and region we can’t provide the property to accommodate this need.

What is the best project you’ve been involved with?

The most exciting project I am involved with at the moment is the potential redevelopment of the former Yorkshire Chemicals site in Leeds. The 10-acre site has planning for over 1.2m sq ft of property but was conceived at a time when high rise residential development was all the rage. The challenge now is to make this site work within the restraints of the current economic climate. The fact the site has frontage to one of the busiest roads in Leeds as well as frontage to the canal and the River Aire all adds to the massive potential of this site.

What is your favourite building?

I think the Shard in London will take some beating when it is completed in terms of a statement building, but for a local traditional office building I think St Paul’s House fronting Park Square in Leeds has many attractive features in a fantastic location.

What piece of legislation would you like to change?

The legislation I would change would be to remove vacant rates on empty property. Property development is by its nature risky and the prospect of being taxed if you can’t find a tenant simply means no development is happening.