‘Whatever city we’ve started to develop, we have continued to develop and still are now’
Capital&Centric has produced artist’s impressions of the Albion Square redevelopment.(Image: Capital&Centric)
The exciting transformation of Hull city centre’s Albion Square will hopefully be the “first of many” regeneration schemes by well-known developers, one of its founders has said. We revealed last month how social regeneration champions Capital&Centric, which was co-founded by Tim Heatley and Adam Higgins, has been confirmed as the preferred lead development partner for Albion Square’s far-reaching revamp, by Hull City Council.
North West based Capital&Centric is currently progressing 14 neighbourhood plans around the UK, having already completed 11 around the UK in key cities including Liverpool, Manchester and Sheffield. And it has an enviable pipeline of regeneration projects featuring over 6,000 homes totalling nearly £2bn – including multimillion-pound plans for Hull city centre.
The developer has a strong pedigree in transforming areas into vibrant places to live, work and socialise. And co-founder Tim Heatley revealed the firm is looking forward to developing hundreds of homes – in excess of 200 homes to rent – as well as a host of other features in Albion Square.
He said: “It probably seems like this has happened all of a sudden but we’ve actually been looking to try and do something in Hull for a long time. Hull suits our strategy of investing and thinking long-term about how we can transform often overlooked, or under-invested, places.
“Hull definitely is on that list – it’s punching below its weight in some ways. It could be much more than it currently it and it hasn’t had the benefit of some of the core cities’ investment. The scale of project was important and an ability to be able to move at pace as well to make something happen, and it’s got a huge public area, so Albion Square had the right hallmarks for us of a Capital&Centric project.
“It’s in excess of 200, possibly up to 300 homes and there will be other other things around them – restaurants, bars and cafes. We’re not necessarily looking at additional retail because we feel places are often over-retailed. I think there’s lots of opportunities for retail that exists in the square and around it, but as we are an operator as much as a developer, we’re going to provide additional facilities to the residents.
“So that will include things like a mini cinema space, a gym and a resident’s lounge area and things like a yoga and pilates studio, and other similar sorts of things. There will perhaps be some roof terraces, public squares and public spaces, and perhaps some private gardens as well.
“It’s got a great mix, therefore, of things that are happening in the building. Part of our thinking of regenerating the wider area, is having people there day and night, and having reasons for people to be in and around there throughout the day and in the evening, which means it’ll feel a lot safer and a lot more bustling and a lot more of an interesting place to be.”
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Capital&Centric’s rental values are maintained at lower, more affordable levels in towns and cities in need of regeneration, compared to rents in more established cities like Leeds. It’s this business model that allows the Manchester company to create its developments.
Tim continued: “In terms of demographics and rental values, Stoke on Trent is a good example. Rents are much lower than they are in core cities, such as Manchester and Leeds. We have to think long term about how we can make it viable. How is it feasible to do these sorts of scale of projects and to that kind of quality, especially with super energy efficient, and great amenities, great facilities and all the furnishings? That’s the challenge.
“We think about it over several years. Rather than build it and then flog it off to highest bidder or separate them out, we’re going to keep all of the completed project together, and we will rent them out, with rents that are affordable to local working people, and hopefully attract new people to live in Hull as well.
“It’s important to attract new people, to want to live in Hull. So if we can keep the rent affordable, and focus on people that might be downsizers, young professionals or young families, then we can start to change the perception of that part of Hull a lot and make it feel like a great place to live.
“For our business to succeed, we’ve got to make sure that it is accessible in terms of pricing. Over time, if we’ve done a good job of regeneration, I think the rent will improve and over several years, a profit for us will emerge – because we do have to make a profit if we’re going to do this.”
Notably, Tim is keen that Albion Square will be just the start for the firm’s relationship with the Hull. In Liverpool, the company has two developments, while Manchester now has six.
He added: “Wherever we have started, whatever city we’ve started to develop, we have continued to develop and still are now. That’s a really good test of ‘are we doing a good job?’ Do people like what we do? And is it successful? So hopefully it’s the first of many things we will do in Hull.”
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