The Hyde Group and Countryside have been selected by Medway Council and the Homes and Communities Agency to turn the regeneration plans for a new community at Rochester Riverside into reality.
Around 1,300 new homes, of which 25 per cent will be affordable housing, will transform the 74 acre (30 hectare) site which adjoins Rochester’s historic town centre and the new railway station.
The scheme has an anticipated gross development value of over £400million and will provide a new community based primary school, nursery, hotels, bar and restaurant, gym, healthcare facilities, office space and a number of retail units, together with 10 acres of open space including a 2.5km riverside walkway. Homes will range from detached riverside houses to affordable one bedroom apartments and 50% of the new homes will comprise family sized accommodation.
The joint venture between Hyde and Countryside’s Partnerships division has been selected following a competitive tendering process. The first planning application should be submitted in late 2016 and subject to planning consent, work on site will be underway by late 2017 and will take twelve years to complete.
Countryside will be the overall developer of the scheme and Hyde will take on the long-term management and maintenance of the affordable homes. The design team is led by HTA and BPTW.
David Gannicott, Group New Business Development Director, The Hyde Group, said: “We are delighted to be spearheading this 50/50 joint venture with Countryside. Hyde has a proven track record in delivering high quality homes for local people and we are very proud that 25% of the 1,300 new homes that the regeneration will deliver will be affordable, providing much needed housing for the people of Medway. This is a place changing regeneration scheme, perhaps the most important in Kent.”
Richard Cherry, CEO of Partnerships at Countryside said: “Rochester Riverside is a site with immense potential and our selection highlights the strength of Countryside’s differentiated Partnerships division. Our proposals respond to this exceptional opportunity with the very highest standards of place-making and design to create a thriving, mixed-use group of neighbourhoods. Working in partnership with all the stakeholders who we have had a long-standing relationship with, we will create a socially sustainable community where people will want to live, work and relax.”
Cllr Rodney Chambers, Medway Council’s Portfolio Holder for Inward Investment, Strategic Regeneration and Partnerships, said: “This is a really important step for this regeneration scheme and it means we can now get the ball rolling and work with Countryside and Hyde to produce what is set to be a really impressive development for Medway. Rochester Riverside is a major part of our ambitious 20-year regeneration plan, helping us to meet the needs of Medway’s growing population, with more homes, a new school and other much needed facilities, all well connected to the historic heart of Rochester and the new railway station.”
An HCA Spokesperson said: “The plans for Rochester Riverside are being fully supported by the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA), which is co-owner of the site and has invested c. £60m to date in order to ready it for development.”