Article Summary

Plans have been submitted to Leeds City Council to build over 600 flats on the former Arla Foods site on the city’s Kirkstall Road. If approved, the project will transform the brownfield site into hundreds of property investment opportunities in the form of build to rent apartments.

Regeneration on Kirkstall Road

The plans for the former Arla Foods headquarters site involve demolishing the existing buildings and transforming the plot into a mixed-use space with 618 build to rent properties. These new Leeds property investment opportunities would span five blocks of between 13 storeys.

Around half of the buy to let properties would be one-bedroom units, with the rest a mix of two and three-bedroom build to rent apartments. Three of the blocks are to be located towards the river, with one in the middle of the site and another next to Kirkstall Road.

As well as the apartment blocks, the plans show space for 230 surface level car parking spaces, all of which would have electric vehicle charging points. There is also about 3,800 sq ft for commercial usage, with space for creche and a café that are likely to be built on the site.

Enhancing the area

The regeneration plans have been put forward by developer Glenbrook Properties. In January, it was announced that they had completed the purchase of the 5.12-acre site from Marshall CDP. The purchase price was undisclosed.

An officer’s report prepared for the meeting said: “This scheme represents an opportunity to regenerate a mostly cleared brownfield site on the southern side of Kirkstall Road. The emerging proposals would provide large areas of open space as well as connectivity to the waterfront and a new section of riverside walkway.

“It is considered that the emerging form and scale of the proposal is considered to enhance the character of this part of Kirkstall Road and help to deliver the identified housing need in the development plan.”

What is property investment?

Put simply, property investment is property purchased with the intention of generating financial returns for its buyer. These returns could be in the form of rental income through buy-to-let properties, house price growth through the future sale of the property or both. Property investments can be owned by individuals or organisations and can be short, long or medium term.

Find out more

If you’d like to learn more about buy to let properties in Leeds or property investment opportunities elsewhere in the country, contact North Property Group now.