20 CASE STUDY On the urban edge of Nottingham,
the site was viewed as a priority for Gedling Council, with intentions to create a new sustainable neighbourhood. The development fits this specification well, offering a dynamic, ecological community covering a range of housing types, sizes and tenures.
PLANNING AHEAD
Gedling Colliery is located five miles to the north east of Nottingham Centre. The north of the site is bordered by the recently opened Gedling Country Park, based on the grounds of the former colliery spoil heap. Shortly after the pit closed in 1991, the mining infrastructure was removed and the land underwent major reconstruction. 4,500 tonnes of local top soil was imported, trees were planted, and lagoons were re-profiled, all to improve its appearance and promote a wider diversity of wildlife. Working in partnership with Homes England, Keepmoat gained approval for 985 homes on the Colliery site. Andrew Mason, divisional chairman at Keepmoat Homes, explained this process to Housebuilder + Developer, paying particular attention to the “collaborative” nature of the project. He said: “All partners recognised from an early stage in the process that due to the complex nature of Gedling Colliery and the interrelationship with the delivery of the new access road, getting the scheme through planning would require a multi- agency approach. “As a major application for Gedling Borough Council, and due to the complex nature of the planning application, Homes England provided funding to allow Arup to provide planning support to the Local Planning Authority.
“The support the authority received
from Arup ensured resources and time could be dedicated to the planning application, and helped to foster an approach which was based on collaboration during the pre-application process to create a well-designed scheme which would gain approval once submitted.”
IT IS HOPED THE ACCESS ROAD WILL SUPPORT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT WITHIN THE BOROUGH, REDUCE TRAFFIC CONGESTION AND PROVIDE RELIEF TO GEDLING VILLAGE
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A review of the initial design was carried out by Opun during the pre-application process, following which comments and recommendations on the design were taken on board by Keepmoat and the project architects, with the revised scheme provid- ing the basis for the final application. Keepmoat’s planning application for the
site is based on a hybrid approach to allow full planning to be granted for the first phase, alongside an outline application for the remainder of the site. Included within the first phase of development are the 315 homes able to be delivered independently of the access road, which is set to be constructed by Nottinghamshire County
Council. Delivery of the remaining 735 homes is dependent on the access road being completed by 2020, which will unlock the remainder of the site for development.
THE GAR Policy 15 of Greater Nottingham’s Aligned Core Strategy lists the GAR (access road) as a ‘Transport Infrastructure Priority’ and ‘important to the delivery of the Core Strategies.’ It is hoped the access road in itself will support economic development within the Borough, reduce traffic conges- tion and provide relief to Gedling Village. The Aligned Core Strategy recognises that comprehensive redevelopment of the Gedling Colliery site has previously stalled because of viability issues, due to the requirement to fund this new road. In order to facilitate the new infrastruc-
ture, and proceed with development, Keepmoat Homes is providing £18m towards the construction of the road. This has, in effect, unlocked £10.8m of D2N2 Local Enterprise Partnership funding allocated to Nottinghamshire County Council. Along with this, Homes England have invested £3.6m through the Public Land Investment Fund, to be repaid through the land receipt, and a further £7,000,000 to Nottinghamshire County Council for land acquisition and site assem- bly, to allow for the development of the GAR.
The development with Homes England was secured under an Agreement for Lease and Building Lease for each of the development phases. A tri-party Escrow Agreement has also been established between Keepmoat, Homes England and Nottinghamshire County Council for the £18m GAR payments, allowing the County Council to draw funding against qualifying expenditure.
Prior to the completion of the legal agreements with Homes England, a full assessment of the site constraints was undertaken, with a final scrutiny of the full “abnormal” costs undertaken on an open book basis before completion of the Lease to confirm the land value payment for the site.
Mason explained further: “Given the previous use of the site identifying solutions for foundations and management, arrangements for any contamination has seen significant cost within the build.” This was augmented by “significant upfront costs associated with the ground works” to facilitate the development. He continued: “Working with our consultants and in partnership with Homes England, we have been able to retain viability for the scheme through collabora- tion, built on a joint vision to deliver a high quality new development.”
Alongside the contribution towards the
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