Developer announced for York Central

York Central is one of the largest brownfield sites in England. Located next to the city’s existing retail and business core and the railway station, the huge mixed-use development site has the potential to bring a valuable piece of York city centre to life.

Designed to transform underused land into vibrant and distinctive residential neighbourhoods, cultural spaces, and a high-quality commercial quarter to the heart of one of the UK’s most historic and desirable cities, York Central will also power York’s economy into the future, helping to provide the homes the city needs and grow its economy.

The 45-acre site will deliver up to 2,500 homes, 20% of which will be affordable and create up to one million square feet of commercial space for offices, retail and leisure. A network of vibrant Public Squares linking to surrounding neighbourhoods in the city centre will be delivered, as well as improvements to York Railway Station and an expanded and enhanced National Railway Museum.

York Central is being brought forward by a partnership between Homes England, Network Rail, the City of York Council and the National Railway Museum. The scheme has the potential to significantly boost the local economy by creating up to 6,500 jobs and delivering over £1.1 billion of Gross Value Added to the economy of York per annum.

There are already £135m of infrastructure works underway to enable this major regional scheme to progress. These include over 3km of new roads, footpaths, cycleways and also include two new bridges over the East Coast Main Line.

The appointment of McLaren Property and Arlington Real Estate as a development partner is the latest milestone in delivering York Central.

McLaren Property and Arlington Real Estate partnership has significant experience in delivering major mixed use regeneration schemes and neighbourhoods including Durhamgate, Newton Aycliffe and Upper Brook Street, Manchester.

Peter Denton, Chief Executive at Homes England said: “This is a major milestone in the important regeneration of York Central. Over the last few years, Homes England and Network Rail have worked closely with City of York Council to create a vision and masterplan, invest in critical infrastructure, and build investment confidence. Our plan will now be accelerated through our chosen development partner for long term delivery and stewardship.”

Robin Dobson, Group Property Director at Network Rail said: “This is a strategic step forward in the regeneration of over 110 acres of underused railway land to deliver significant investment and social value for the City and region. York Central puts infrastructure at the heart of a new residential, commercial, and cultural neighbourhood. The project demonstrates the pivotal role Network Rail Property can play in unlocking sites which deliver growth, jobs and housing.”

John Gatley, chief executive of McLaren Property, said: “We are proud to have been selected to deliver York Central – the most significant regeneration scheme in the north of England. McLaren have deep roots in Yorkshire, and we are committed to working with local stakeholders to enhance the great city of York.”

Allan Cook, founder of Arlington Real Estate, said: “Having spent the last 15 years focussing on the delivery of large scale mixed use development schemes in the North of England we have witnessed firsthand the positive benefits, to both communities and the local economy, of large scale regeneration. We are delighted to have been given the opportunity, alongside our partners McLaren Property, to be able to write the next chapter in the story of this great historic city.”

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