John Sisk and Son Ltd will deliver over £100m of critical infrastructure at York Central, in a partnership with Homes England to develop the 45-hectare brownfield site
Homes England has entered into a contract with John Sisk and Son Ltd to unlock the city-centre brownfield site, with over £100m of infrastructure at York Central planned. This will eventually allow the construction of up to 2,500 homes in a mixed-use neighbourhood.
Work is expected to begin immediately on the site, which has not seen any activity for over four decades.
Funding has been secured through the government’s Housing Infrastructure Grant (£77.1m), the City of York Council’s Enterprise Zone Fund (£35m) and from the West Yorkshire Combined Authority (£23.5m).
The infrastructure works will allow further development of the site
Situated at the heart of the city adjacent to York Station, plans are to transform the underused brownfield land into residential, cultural, recreational, commercial and outdoor amenity spaces.
Over a three year period, Sisk will deliver key infrastructure such as a new road bridge over the East Coast Main Line railway, which features pedestrian and cycle lanes segregated from the carriageway, and a new pedestrian and cycle footbridge will be added to the existing Water End Bridge.
The new access extends for 2km (with separated cycle and pedestrian paths) to connect Water End through the site to Leeman Road, and a rail spur to the National Railway Museum.
Sisk will also provide the earthworks and utility works for the entire site.
When the new infrastructure at York Central is complete, further development will create up to 2,500 homes, 20% of which will be affordable, and over 1 million sq. ft. of commercial space for offices, retail and leisure, providing a significant boost for the local economy. It will also see improved connectivity and access, as well as significant high quality public realm and open spaces, including an urban park.
The development is a collaborative effort between majority landowners Homes England and Network Rail with the City of York Council and the National Railway Museum
Peter Freeman, chair of Homes England, said:
“This marks a significant moment for York Central. We know what a transformational impact urban regeneration schemes such as this can have on a place and the benefits it will offer York’s community. That’s why we’ve partnered with Network Rail to help unlock this long-stalled site.”
Cllr Keith Aspden, Leader of City of York Council said:
“We are working closely with partners in the York Central Partnership to deliver on our shared vision– a regeneration which drives inclusive and green growth across the city. We will continue to keep residents, businesses and communities informed as this project gathers pace and we deliver the exciting plans for the York Central site.”
Paul Brown, CEO at John Sisk and Son, commented:
“Sisk is delighted to be involved in this exciting project and to build this major infrastructure in-line with the York Central masterplan. We are committed to delivering this project for the benefit of the whole community and look forward to working in partnership with all the key stakeholders.”
Robin Dobson, group property director at Network Rail said:
“This is a major milestone for this multi-million-pound York Central development. Getting the transformation underway will take us closer to delivering an ambitious new City regeneration and community project, that integrates both road and rail.”
The contract with Sisk follows news that Homes England and Network Rail has officially launched the procurement process to secure a strategic development partner to bring forward York Central, supported by JLL.
