Why the ‘build it and they will come’ approach to development no longer works - Lee Savage

We have been developing our proposals for South Village for some time now, in line with the emerging South Bank plans. However, for us to play a significant role in this legacy, we needed to ensure that whatever scheme we developed would be the best fit for the city and its residents - not just now but for years to come.

With ambitions to deliver up to 1,925 mixed-tenure homes, including BtR and affordable housing, as well as circa 500,000 sq ft of flexible commercial space and an amazing ‘village green’ the size of a professional sports field, South Village complements the aims set out in the recently announced Leeds Transformational Regeneration Partnership, established between the Government, Homes England, Leeds City Council and West Yorkshire Combined Authority (WYCA). Leeds is currently at the forefront of the country’s housing growth, and once complete South Village is set to further bolster this achievement, delivering up to 25 per cent of the Council’s target for city centre housing provision.

Continued engagement with the public sector has played a large part in our progress, and a real highlight of UKREiiF was being able to bring together our key stakeholders to announce the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding with Homes England. This will be crucial for allowing us to accelerate infrastructure works on South Village, bringing forward the emergence of the first plots in 2025.

It's important that developments of this scale are able to fulfil immediate requirements, while also being designed to accommodate emerging needs. Our aim for South Village is that we can introduce the majority of the public realm early in the development process, quickly establishing a sense of place and bringing forward amenity. This will also allow us to introduce additional meanwhile uses, building on the Canvas Yard open air concerts that we’ve been hosting over the last three years.

Our view is that places are not ‘made’ upon completion, but that placemaking needs to be bedded into a development from the very beginning. This is an approach we’ve successfully taken at our SOYO scheme, where our partnerships with local artist, EV Hardaker and the likes of Leeds City College and Leeds Playhouse, who have animated the space during its construction, acknowledging the role they play as a part of the city’s cultural quarter.

Though not yet fully complete, the SOYO neighbourhood continues to participate in initiatives such as Leeds Pride, Light Nights and many more, working with organisations such as Leeds City Council and LeedsBID and signifying the community identity that this place has already created. South Village will replicate this same approach.

Ultimately, the success of South Village to date can be attributed to long-term, sustained, engagement between public and private sector, which has created a fantastic foundation from which to create communities. ‘Build it and they will come’ is no longer enough: Plan it with them in mind, and they will stay.

Lee Savage is a director at Caddick.​​​​​​​