More than 460 homes set to be built in Leeds following £12m deal

Developer HUB Group and Bridges Fund Management, a specialist investor, have acquired two significant sites to the west of Leeds city centre from BAM Properties for £12m.

Set at the heart of a mixed-use neighbourhood on Whitehall Road, the sites in Leeds have already secured detailed planning permission for residential and office uses, with one commercial office block and a "pocket park" already built.

This is the eighth deal on which HUB and Bridges have joined forces to deliver community-focused residential schemes.

A spokesman said: "The acquisition in Leeds also continues HUB’s expansion into key cities across the UK, following the recent consent of its 2,000-home mixed-use scheme in Digbeth, Birmingham, and shortlisting for Edinburgh’s £170m Fountainbridge redevelopment scheme."

"HUB and Bridges plan to deliver a high-quality, mixed-used scheme incorporating 463 previously consented homes across two blocks, to include Build to Rent and market sale accommodation.

"The scheme will also involve a range of amenities that reflect the site’s heritage, making the best of the nearby canal as well as improving pedestrian and cycle routes into the city centre. The partners will be working closely with Leeds City Council to explore options."

The spokesman added; "In line with HUB and Bridges’ focus on delivering homes in well-connected locations, the site is ideally located less than 10 minutes’ walk from Leeds railway station, providing easy access to both regional and national routes.

"The development will also contribute to a wider development drive that is pulling the city’s centre of gravity to the west. It is directly adjacent to Leeds’s largest new office development, Wellington Place, as well as several other major new residential schemes. "

Damien Sharkey, Managing Director at HUB, said: “HUB has a proven track record of delivering beautifully designed mixed-use schemes in strategic locations, and we are excited to bring that experience to this significant masterplan in the centre of Leeds.

"Leeds is a dynamic city with a young and diverse population, and this scheme continues our strategy of acquiring sites in ‘lifestyle’ cities – places with strong fundamentals and demand for high quality housing.”

Simon Ringer, Partner at Bridges Fund Management, said: “Our previous projects with HUB are on course to deliver over 1,500 high-quality homes in growth locations across Greater London, helping to address the shortage of lower-cost and affordable housing in the capital.

"So we are delighted to be able to join forces again on this exciting new project in Leeds, a city where Bridges has made a number of previous investments. It will allow us to meet the strong local demand for quality lower-cost housing while also tackling a pressing societal need.”

Dougie Peters, BAM Properties’ managing director, said: “Significant investment has poured into this area of Leeds since we designed, built and sold the first Latitude office building in 2008. HUB Group is well placed to conclude these two schemes and we look forward to progressing the remaining Latitude site which has planning consent for 155,000 square feet of quality office space.”

This acquisition comes shortly after HUB and Bridges secured two major forward funding deals: one with CBRE Global Investors’ Affordable Housing Fund, for Abbey Place, a 245-home scheme in Greenwich, South East London; and another with Realstar for Wembley Link, a 256-home Build to Rent development in north London.