Pledge to continue stalled £100m Hove development (From The Argus)
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Pledge to continue stalled £100m Hove development
5:00pm Sunday 17th February 2013 in News
Pledge to continue stalled £100m Hove development
Developers behind a stalled £100 million scheme have pledged they are committed to the project – and have bought an adjoining site to use as a potential bargaining chip.
Coal Pensions has had permission to transform the Sackville Trading Estate in Sackville Road, Hove, since 2010.
The proposal, which includes a food store, 92 homes, retail units and office space all above an under- ground car park, could create 690 jobs.
After receiving the go-ahead to extend this permission for a further three years those leading the development have confirmed the owners have bought the Warner Estates site immediately to the south of it.
This was despite Brighton and Hove City Council allocating this plot as a waste transfer site and therefore not available for homes or offices.
Leading business figures told The Argus they felt the motivation could be to use it as a bargaining chip in negotiations for a new scheme.
David Carvey, of P2 Developments, which is leading the project for Coal Pensions, said: “There has been a lot of work going on behind the scenes on this project.
“It is very complex and has stalled on viability grounds not finance – the economic and property downturn has unfortunately been outside Coal Pension’s control but rest assured that they are committed to this project.”
Planning permission for the original scheme was due to expire on March 2.
Problems were posed when Parkridge, the development firm appointed by Coal Pensions, went out of business. The same individuals have since formed P2.
An extra three years’ permission has been granted by the council’s planning committee.
A council spokesman said: “We were aware that the coal yard site was being marketed and understand the purchasers to be the freeholders of the Sackville trading estate.
“We have not been in contact with the new owners but we are always happy to meet site owners and discuss their aspirations.
“Work is due to start on a new waste sites allocation document in the next few months. This is unlikely to be adopted before 2015/16.
“There is no mechanism to revoke or review allocated sites before a replacement plan is in place. For this reason a change in ownership will not affect the planning policy for the site.”
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saveHOVE says...
11:18pm Sun 17 Feb 13
David Carvey of P2 knows of the saveHOVE wish to see a pedestrian link - a park-like walkway from the redevelopment down to Hove Station.
Mention of this to the new Hove Station area Neighbourhood Plan Forum before Christmas was met with enthusiastic support from residents attending.
Landowners and developers either side of the tracks are badly restricted and blighted by the threat of a waste transfer station bordering the areas they wish to redevelop. The designation should be moved west to the Leighton Road public dump area which is also trackside and already in use for waste collection.
That Waste Transfer Station designation is going nowhere if the owners of the site do not give consent to it. And yes, Land Registry confirms that Coal Pension owners of the Sackville Trading Estate bought it.
Checkmate.