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423-homes plan for Fleet goes to committee

An application for 423 homes at Fleet goes before planners at Hart District Council on Wednesday, December 14. Just days after plans for 700 homes and a school were announced by Wates Developments, Hart’s planning committee will consider an application by Berkeley Strategic Land for a site nearby at land north of Netherhouse Copse in Hitches Lane. The 35 hectare site includes 13.42 hectares of Suitable Alternative Natural Greenspace (SANG) which would form an extension to Edenbrook Country

Sunninghill High Street widening plan

Sunninghill High Street may be widened to cope with congestion. The Royal Borough of Windsor & Maidenhead has proposed widening a section of the road by 1.2 metres to allow two lanes to run during peak times along the whole of the High Street. Under the plan most of the parking spaces will be retained. Cllr Phill Bicknell, cabinet member for highways and transport, said: “These proposals offer us a chance to improve access to Sunninghill for everyone. “By reclaiming a small section of the

Capita Hall praised as Jacksons plan is approved

The developer of the former Jacksons store in Reading was praised by the council over its scheme to convert the building into flats and restaurants. Capita Hall has given approval by Reading Borough Council’s planning applications committee in Wednesday (December 7) to create three restaurants on the ground floor and 33 flats in the upper floors and in a separate building at the rear. Crucially the application included plans to preserve the frontage of the much-missed department store along

700 homes and a school proposed at Elvetham Chase, Fleet

Plans for 700 homes and a primary school have been submitted to Hart District Council. Wates Developments has submitted the plans on 146 acres of land known as Elvetham Chase, north of Fleet. It forms a second phase of a previous development known as Elvetham Heath, Of the 146 acres, 80 will remain undeveloped as green space, much of it forming a country park . There will also be a ‘green corridor’ on the development which will connect with the nearby Edenbrook Country Park. The application

Grove Business Park approval will create hundreds of jobs

The planned major expansion of Grove Business Park at Wantage has been approved. Plans to add 220,000 sq ft of space to the Oxfordshire park had stalled in October after a question over an Environmental Impact Assessment arose. The application was deferred at October’s meeting of Vale of White Horse District Council. Now the planning committee’s approval is set to bring s significant jobs boost the area. Many of the old buildings have already been demolished to make way for more than modern

BlackBerry welcomed by Royal Borough

BlackBerry’s move to Maidenhead town centre has prompted a welcome from the Royal Borough. The communications giant moved its European headquarters to the three floors in the Pearce Building. Cllr Simon Dudley, leader of the council, said: “Maidenhead is on the move and BlackBerry’s arrival is a great step forward in our vision of achieving the dynamic future the town deserves as we build a borough for everyone.” Florian Bienvenu, senior vice president, enterprise sales EMEA at BlackBerry,

Figgy Pudding Christmas lunch guests hear thoughts of TVPA winner

Around 75 property and construction professionals celebrated Christmas in Henley on Tuesday (December 6) with UK Property Forums’ Figgy Pudding Christmas lunch. And guests at the Leander Club event heard from one of the Thames Valley’s highly successful developers. After a welcome by Mike Righton, managing partner of event sponsors RLB, town manager Helen Barnett gave context to the global brand that is Henley. She reminded guests the venue for the lunch was not only the most successful

Council agrees to buy share in Station Hill

Councillors have agreed to buy a stake in the land at Station Hill, Reading after losing patience with wrangles over rights of light. In September Reading Borough Council’s policy committee threatened to invoke rarely-used powers which allow the authority to acquire a stake in the land so that it can overrule easements and other rights where they could frustrate progress of a development. Sackville Developments, a joint venture between Benson Elliot and Stanhope, have been in protracted

EY predicts Reading will be fastest growing city

Reading is expected to be the UK’s fastest growing city outside of London over the next three years according to EY’s UK Region and City economic forecast 2016. The report forecasts a growth in Reading’s GVA (productivity) of 2.5 per cent to 2019. EY estimates employment in Reading will grow at a rate of 0.9 per cent between 2017 and 2019 in the key sectors, the fastest of any UK city, creating potentially 3,000 new jobs.  Nigel Horton-Baker, executive director for Reading UK CIC, said:

Sue Boor becomes head of marketing at The Lexicon

Cushman & Wakefield has appointed Sue Boor as head of marketing for The Lexicon Bracknell. She was previously head of marketing for Manchester Arndale which is jointly owned by M&G Real Estate and Intu Properties, winning several national and international marketing awards. In a career spanning three decades in the industry she also launched the first regional shopping centre in the South West - The Mall at Cribbs Causeway, jointly owned by M&G Real Estate, Intu Properties and JT Baylis. The