Vision for new ‘Creative Quarter’ in Kentish Town will bring much-needed homes and jobs to Camden
An area to the west of Kentish Town could become a ‘Creative Quarter’ and a hub for film, creative and cultural industries through a new development providing hundreds of new homes and thousands of jobs.
Camden Council has agreed a deal with experienced London developer Yoo Capital to begin working immediately with residents to create a masterplan for the redevelopment of land which currently houses the Holmes Road Depot and the Regis Road Recycling Centre.
Residents, local businesses and community groups will continue to help directly shape plans for the area which build on identified community priorities set as part of the Kentish Town Planning Framework. Moving forward, every stage of the project is subject to planning and consultation with the local community. Community engagement is beginning and will continue to submission of detailed proposals for planning in 2024-2025.
The agreement also commits to continuing services currently provided at the Holmes Road Depot and the Regis Road Recycling Centre sites which are highly valued by local residents. The project will deliver a zero emissions neighbourhood.
The project will deliver significantly more new social rent and living rent homes, where few currently exist.
We know there is huge creative potential in the people who live and work in Camden. We want to unlock the Kentish Town industrial area to transform this cut-off, unwelcoming site, into one that becomes a greener, welcoming space, connecting Gospel Oak with Kentish Town. A new thriving neighbourhood, which is a beacon for creativity, providing more desperately needed affordable homes for local people, good jobs and opportunities for existing communities.
This is going to be a development shaped with local communities and Camden and Yoo Capital are looking forward to working with residents on realising the shared community vision and getting residents’ thoughts at every stage. We see this development as a way to help combat many of the issues residents are facing in Camden.
The masterplan will aim to deliver the objectives of the Kentish Town Planning Framework to create a sustainable mixed-use new neighbourhood that has industrial, commercial and creative activity provided alongside new homes and infrastructure to support the local community. It will:
- Deliver new genuinely affordable housing as well as replacing the homes currently located at Holmes Road.
- Deliver training and employment opportunities in the creative industries for residents, create new jobs and employment space.
- Be a sustainable development, which creates a zero emissions neighbourhood in Kentish Town.
- Create new green and open spaces and better connections from Kentish Town to Gospel Oak.
- Provide new council waste and recycling facilities, new offices and workshops to replace facilities at Holmes Road.
- Guarantee public recycling and waste facilities are present and accessible throughout the development.
The area has the potential to become a new hub for creative film in central London that provides facilities for live broadcasting, studio filming, postproduction and audience viewing. Creative industries generate approximately £115.9 billion for the UK economy and provide more than two million jobs.
Lloyd Lee, Managing Partner, Yoo Capital, said: “We are looking forward to working with the London Borough of Camden and the local community to bring forward the ambitions for a Camden Film Quarter. This project will be a shot in the arm for the UK’s creative industries as we look to fuel its exponential growth by attracting the best talent in TV and film to the area. We will be spending the coming months getting to know our neighbours and beginning our work with them to co-author an exemplary masterplan vision.”
ENDS
For information:
The Kentish Town Planning Framework sets out the planning vision and objectives for this area. This vision is for:
- A hub for economic growth, with intensive industrial, commercial and creative activity, provided alongside high-quality homes that support a diverse local community.
- A seamlessly integrated place that is well-connected with surrounding neighbourhoods of Kentish Town, Gospel Oak and Dartmouth Park.
- An environmentally friendly place, where people walk and cycle and that draws the green character of Hampstead Heath through the urban neighbourhood connecting to Kentish Town High Street.
- A socially mixed place that builds on the distinctive community and character of Kentish Town, bringing residents, workers and visitors together with space and facilities to relax, play and interact enjoy cultural activities and events
- There was strong support for the framework’s vision with 80% of respondents in support of the overall approach taken in the planning framework.
Specific objectives across the Kentish Town Planning Framework area include:
- Around 2,000 new homes.
- Over 3,000 new jobs and new employment space.
- Ambitious employment and training strategy providing genuine opportunities for local people.
- Innovative design approaches to intensify industrial buildings.
- New pedestrian and cycle friendly connections between Kentish Town, Gospel Oak and Hampstead Heath.
- Sustainable, innovative development that delivers a Zero Emissions Neighbourhood.
- Attractive, safe and green open spaces and public realm that is open and accessible to all.
Yoo Capital
Yoo Capital is a real estate investment firm specialising in community building and responsible transformation of mixed-use developments.
In November 2021, Yoo Capital acquired the former Saville Theatre on Shaftesbury Avenue – a listed building that once hosted live performances by the Rolling Stones, Chuck Berry, The Who and Jimi Hendrix – and is working with key community stakeholders to return it to a live performance venue with ancillary uses. The firm is also responsible for bringing forward the vision for Olympia; a £1.3bn investment to reinvigorate the iconic 137-year old exhibition halls into London’s newest cultural hub which includes the rejuvenation of the iconic exhibition halls, a 4,400 capacity live music venue managed by AEG Presents; the largest new permanent theatre in 40 years managed by Trafalgar; a creative arts school, in partnership with Wetherby and The BRIT School, two globally renowned hotels, 20+ restaurants and bars, 550,000 sq ft of creative offices and studios, and 2.5 acres of gardens and public realm.
Yoo Capital has invested over £2.5 billion into Central London since it was founded in 2010 by international property entrepreneur John Hitchcox and real estate veteran Lloyd Lee. The firm is committed to creating new spaces for London that support the arts, creative, hospitality and science-led industries and are sustainably minded to evolve and stand the test of time.
Additional information can be found at www.yoocapital.com
Media enquiries
Camden Council
Yoo Capital
PURPLE- [email protected]