Fat chance

The reasons why brownfield sites stand empty for years, or even decades, are many and varied. To highlight them, Regenerate asked 10 leading industry figures to identify one site that they considered to be the country’s greatest unfulfilled brownfield opportunity – the site that ought to have been developed by now, but for some reason hasn’t been.

Some of the sites here are already on the regeneration radar, but are being tackled slowly in the face of many complexities; some are stuck in Kafka-esque bureaucracy, and others are simply waiting for the regeneration agencies and property developers to move in. Whatever the reason, together they illustrate the challenges and the potential of brownfield.

Ford Airfield, fleet air arm Station, West Sussex

Ford Airfield achieved glory 65 years ago as a Battle of Britain air station, but its current state is less illustrious. The site near Arundel, which is now in private ownership, is still criss-crossed by unused concrete runways and is a common setting for Sunday markets. An industrial estate is the only indication of development activity. And yet the site is strategically positioned, with nearby railway lines connecting to London and Gatwick, Brighton, Littlehampton, Bognor and Portsmouth.

Gareth Capner, partner with planning consultancy Barton Willmore Planning Partnership, says: “The potential of this site has been talked about for years. The site needs a dollop of major mixed-use development. The West Sussex structure plan could enable the first part of its development, and the South-east plan could bring forward development of the whole, so it does have a chance.”

Ford Airfield, fleet air arm Station, West Sussex

Winnington Urban Village, Northwich, Cheshire

There are big plans for the 50 or more hectares of derelict and disused industrial land largely owned by the chemical company Brunner Mond beside the river Weaver at Winnington. Proposals to develop about 1200 homes, plus amenities, were put forward four years ago and Vale council approved them. But the project was called in and, following a public inquiry in 2004, the plans were rejected over affordable housing issues. Now the site is subject to a Local Plan inquiry covering the whole of Northwich, which finally got under way last month. In the meantime Barratt, Taylor Woodrow and Morris Homes, the housebuilders involved, are waiting to deliver on the government’s housebuilding agenda and get rid of an eyesore.

David Pretty, Barratt group chief executive, says: “This site has the potential to be a tremendous asset, not just to Northwich but to Cheshire and the wider North-west. For those of us in the vanguard of urban regeneration and trying to tackle the housing crisis that faces our country, it is frustrating in the extreme to see a site like this – which could already be answering real housing need – still standing idle five years down the line.”

Twyford Tip, Ealing, west London

Twyford Tip is what this site was, but the Asia Centre is what it could be. Asian businessman and film producer Sharad Patel has been trying to build a leisure, retail and entertainment complex on this site for more than 20 years. He even bought the Grimshaw-designed pavilion from the 1992 Seville Expo, hoping to re-erect it on the site. But although the scheme has the backing of influential bodies, there is still no prospect of development.

Jackie Sadek, chief executive of regeneration firm Park Royal Partnership, says: “It is a fantastic opportunity right beside the North Circular Road, but it has been sitting there unused forever. When I was working for Stanhope, it was brought to my boss – that was in 1985.”

The Birley Fields, Hulme, Manchester

Hulme is one of regeneration’s big success stories, but there is still a tract of land that is noticeably waiting for the regeneration bandwagon to roll in. The 10 ha site became a battleground for local conservationists when a 110-year-old Italian Poplar tree on the site, the Birley Tree, was felled to make way for development. Since then, development has largely failed to materialise, apart from two office buildings. The landowner is Manchester council, which has commissioned Jones Lang LaSalle to carry out a review to determine the area’s future development. Once that has been finalised, the plots of land that make up Birley will be released to the market. A council spokesperson says: “The development did suffer from the impact of 9/11 and the global slowdown in business confidence that resulted. However, in recent months, there has been a significant revival of interest in the remaining land at Birley Fields, which is extremely encouraging.”

Nick Rudlin, northern director of regeneration consultant Urbed, says:

“It is right in the heart of an area that has been regenerated, but for some reason it has never been done. Local people campaigned to save the Birley Tree, but it was chopped down. There are still chunks of the tree lying on the site. That could have been maintained.”

Townmead Road, Fulham, west London

This motley collection of old industrial units and patches of derelict land lies in the shadow of one of the capital’s largest residential developments, St George’s Imperial Wharf. Like Imperial Wharf, this site has a great location fronting the River Thames. And yet, while 1665 homes, shops, restaurants and other amenities are being built by St George on the 13 ha Imperial Wharf site, its near neighbour is still waiting for its transformation.

Yolande Barnes, director of mixed-use research with property firm Savills, says: “Imperial Wharf has been the exception in Hammersmith. What’s stymied this land is the presumption against private sector residential in the borough. This is an amazing riverside area, and yet it is fronted by industrial units and out-of-town-style retail sheds. There is such a contrast with the view across the river where the different planning regime in Wandsworth has resulted in a string of riverside developments.”

Bishopsgate Goods Yard, east London

Probably the best known of the London sites nominated, Bishopsgate Goods Yard was the setting for a battle royal over the proposed demolition of its unlisted but highly regarded railway viaduct to make way for a station for the East London Line extension from Dalston to Croydon. The support of Prince Charles was not enough to save the viaduct from demolition, but the planned station still only exists as a computer-generated image. The government finally granted the go-ahead for the first phase of the line earlier this year and Transport for London says it will be in place by 2010.

Ben Derbyshire, managing director with HTA Architects, says: “By 2002, Eric Reynolds of Urban Space Management had transformed the Piranesian labyrinth of vaults beneath Bishopsgate Goods Yard into a hive of activity.

I swam there regularly, there was a vast party venue, yacht builders, go-karting on the roof. Then tragically, after a long battle, its demolition was approved by the courts and all that ended. Three years on, with no development in prospect, its destruction proceeds at a desultory pace.”

Euston Station, London

Euston represents the potential of building on top of land-eating urban railway stations. Air-rights development was the big idea of the late 1980s, then conceived primarily to provide large open-plan dealing floors for City companies. The most famous example of the genre was Embankment Place above London’s Charing Cross Station. Many stations are under-used, particularly Euston’s sprawling 1960s building, but that is set to change, following the government’s announcement of a £4bn station improvement.

Ian Lindsay, acting chief executive of regeneration agency Kent Thameside, and who is about to take the job of head of major stations with Network Rail, says: “This station is in the heart of a regeneration area and has huge potential for mixed-use development above it and around it. It is one of the greatest unused opportunities around a transport hub.”

Morlands Enterprise Park, Glastonbury, Somerset

Tanneries house some of the least environmentally benign processes. So the closure of the Morlands sheepskin factory in Glastonbury left a legacy of contamination that has proved an obstacle to redevelopment. The 12.5 ha site was bought by South West Development Agency four years ago, in an attempt to put an end to more than a decade of dereliction. The RDA is working with Mendip council, which owns 3.5 ha of adjacent land, to redevelop the site as Morlands Enterprise Park, but this has been delayed by such factors as contamination studies and community consultation.

Esther Scott, development manager with the RDA, explains: “The decision to demolish some of the existing buildings was considerably delayed because we had to justify our reasons.” The RDA and partners have now secured outline planning permission for the site and full planning permission for the infrastructure. They hope to announce agreement with a developer for the first phase of industrial and office development soon.

Ian Thorn, director with consultant Green Issues, says: “This is a classic example of a major opportunity to bring jobs and business to a semi-rural community in need of both. It is the type of job that RDAs were created for.”

Car parks, Kensington Gardens and Queens Gate, Kensington

Look behind some of London’s surface car parks and you’ll find a story of international intrigue. These two one-acre sites are excellent examples in the capital’s prime market. The coach park on the north-west corner of Kensington Gardens is known by London agents as the Russian site because the land, which is owned by the Crown, was subsequently leased to the Russian government. As a result of this diplomatic agreement, the site remains potentially London’s most expensive coach park. The car park on Queens Gate is believed to have been the subject of an ownership dispute between the Shah of Iran and the Iranian government for many years.

Ian Marris, partner with property consultant Knight Frank, says: “Land doesn’t get any more prime than this. It’s a complete waste. These are highly valuable urban sites that could be enhancing the community.”

The York and Albany Pub, Parkway, north London

There are no concerns about late opening hours at the York and Albany Pub at the top of Parkway in Camden – it’s been closed for 20 years. Whereas many unwanted pubs around the country are being converted or redeveloped for housing, the Crown Estate seems not to have found a new use for its asset.

Ken Dytor, managing director of developer Urban Catalyst, says: “I was actually the last landlord of the pub, as I was working at the Crown Estate and took a temporary licence on when it was planned to re-lease it. But I left the Crown Estate and nothing ever happened to the pub. It’s a shame because it is a stunning little building and a fantastic resource.”