Taylor Scott International News
At least 100,000 homes could be built on public land in London but sites will need co-ordinated planning to maximise delivery, a new analysis suggests. London needs tens of thousands of new homes to be built every year to cope with demand for both owners and tenants as steep population growth coupled with years of undersupply of new homes means that London is bearing the brunt of the UK’s housing crisis. With the city’s population expected to surpass its previous 1939 peak of 8.9 million early next year and continue climbing to 11.3 million by 2050, the need to make full use of public sector assets is pressing, according to the report from real estate firm Savills. It reveals that the process of identifying and co-ordinating the delivery of sites is more advanced in London than in other part of the country. ‘The position of the Greater London Authority (GLA) as a major landowner as well as Mayoral powers to facilitate land assembly are key to delivering more homes. Boroughs are also becoming more proactive at managing their assets and building more homes,’ said Susan Emmett, director of residential research at Savills. The firm’s analysis of the GLA’s asset database, which includes land belonging to Transport for London (TfL), London Legacy Development Corporations (LLDC), London Fire Brigade (LFB) and the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), has identified enough public land for at least 100,000 new homes in London. Many of these sites are operational. However, this number also includes sites for the 40,000 new homes previously earmarked by the GLA when it acquired the London property assets of the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) worth £365 million in 2012. Of the 635 hectare portfolio inherited at that time, 85% has been developed, committed for development, or is being marketed. Since April 2012 contractual commitments have been entered into for over 145 hectares of land, with an estimated gross development value in excess of £3.6 billion. The Mayor is committed to having an exit strategy in place for all of the GLA’s current landholdings by 2016 and the process is well advanced, the report explains. The analysis of GLA sites marked for disposal showed that many of the saleable sites are grouped in lower value areas to the east of Canary Wharf. ‘Lower value, post-industrial land with poor infrastructure links can be difficult to bring forward through traditional development routes. A co-ordinated approach with the Mayor at the centre is essential to open up new neighbourhoods,’ it adds. It points out that the GLA aims to assist in the regeneration of areas by investing in infrastructure and site decontamination and better transport links and investment in the public realm are also important to encourage development, especially in new areas. ‘There are some good examples of public land already being used in regeneration schemes to bring forward more homes. One major site delivering a substantial number of homes is Barking Riverside with plans for up to… Taylor Scott International
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