LISTEN: Devolution, large scale regeneration, and how to attract inward investment were all debated at the first ever Estates Gazette City Talks event, held in Southampton.
St Mary’s Stadium, home of the premier league Southampton Saints football club, hosted around 260 of the city and surrounds’ property fraternity.
Dawn Baxendale, panellist and chief executive of Southampton City Council, said the council believed a mayor should be elected as part of the devolution process and confirmed the city was “now in negotiations with the government for a mayoral deal for the Solent”. She said: “Watch this space, because it’s coming extremely quickly.”
The city is also looking to capitalise on momentum, with take-up increasing 87% year-on-year, average office rents jumping 12% from 2014 to 2015, and less than three years of office stock left at the current absorption rate, according to the latest EGi research released at the event.
Fellow panellist Martin Hastelow, head of the Southampton office of Savills, said the next issue for Southampton is the lack of sites available. He’d like to see new office development and said there is developer appetite for it. “Growth rates on rents are some of the highest in the country here, making Southampton an attractive proposition.”
Estates Gazette garnered guests reaction to the debate and spoke about the Southampton market. Listen to an interview with Samuel Fox, the council’s planning and development manager, and Mike Darling at Aecom, a significant investor in the city.
Other panellists included Martin Judd, director at Aecom, and Paul Brett, land director at Inland Homes. The event was chaired by Stacey Meadwell, regional editor at Estates Gazette.
• For full coverage of the event, see the South East focus in Estates Gazette, 21 May 2016.
• To send feedback, email lisa.pilkington@estatesgazette.com or tweet @EGLisaP or @estatesgazette
