Adair Paxton - Mixed-Use Development - Tadcaster, Brownfield site at Church Fenton

Date: 28 Nov 2003

Adair Paxton, one of Leeds' oldest estate agents and chartered surveyors has sold a Brownfield site for over double its original objective of £1m.

A 3.3-acre Brownfield site at Church Fenton, near Tadcaster, North Yorkshire has been sold for an incredible price which realised over double the figure placed by its private owners. This linear site is adjacent to railway lines outside the village "envelope", and has had a chequered history due to varying support for planning, which was eventually won by the vendors well conceived scheme on appeal.

"Our clients originally believed the site to be worth around £1m, but after we had studied the area and the site we saw its greater potential" said Bruce Collinson, Land and Development Partner for Adair Paxton.

The company swung into an intensive marketing campaign, targeting all relevant developers, and providing them with comprehensive information about the site. A large sale board was erected on site and a striking advertising campaign in both local and national specialist press appeared. The glossy colour brochure helped to spread the word, which proved so popular with potential house builders it had to be reprinted. The comprehensive engineering report which covered all aspects of a possible sale was prepared well in advance of the marketing programme kicking in, and again proved an essential part of the mix as numerous copies were requested.
"Following our campaign there were around 15 serious offers made, which eventually narrowed down to 3, with the final deal sealed after extensive negotiations.” said Bruce. "This result has more than delighted the client, and our own team has been over the moon" said Bruce "They are now busy trying to satisfy the long list of land requirements this campaign ignited from the dozen or so deals we have in the pipeline".
The recent vigorous hike in house prices has consequently driven land values up very sharply, with fewer Greenfield sites available for less than £1m.per acre, some as much as over £1.5m. The effective shortage of land, either Greenfield or Brownfield, together with planning delays, has contributed to this escalation in land values. Governmental planning guidelines require local authorities to give priority to Brownfield, but in actuality this is rarely the case.
For example, Selby District Council has recently defended its decision to support residential development of an 8 acre brownfield site, also in Church Fenton, whilst at nearby Sherburn in Elmet, an 80 acre greenfield site is allocated and awaiting the Secretary of State's approval.

Adair Paxton indicated that, following it landmark deal, it will take some time to source many of the region's development requirements, due to this shortage of land which has been granted suitable planning consent.

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