Nottingham’s 60,000 students make up a fifth of the city’s population and add a huge amount economically.
The city’s biggest challenge is getting them to stay – but the exodus of under 30s from London and the shifting focus of the UK politically and economically could be its big chance.
“For me it’s all about future talent,” says Brendan Moffett, chief executive, Marketing NG, speaking at EG’s Nottingham Question Time.
“In the last year 93,000 people have left London, its obvious what is happening. London is not sustainable and there’s a real opportunity for cities like Nottingham to grab hold of those highly talented people.
Attracting new businesses to employ graduates is a key part of that, and subsequently building the right space for occupiers is essential. However, the city is suffering a critical space shortage due to development not really stacking up economically: rents are less than £20 per sq ft, but they need to be around £25 to make development viable.
“That’s where we come in, we are doing two or three developments ourselves, our view is the minute we start to do it, we can accommodate people,” said David Bishop, corporate director of development, Nottingham City Council.
“The council is putting its money where its mouth is, and that will change the situation for the ball to start rolling quicker.”
Vivienne Clements, director, Henry Boot Developments, one of the most active in the city, says council help is essential: “Nottingham is not the only city to have this issue, particularly as construction costs rise,” she says.
“You have got to be innovative, from a developer’s point of view you have got to find a structure to enable things to happen. The main thing is occupiers need confidence. Local authorities need to be not afraid of business, biting the bullet and driving the private sector.”
Clements says what occupiers are interested in when you talk to them about pre-lets is certainty: when can you deliver, what is your funding mechanism and if there is someone driving it?
She says: “Its not just about rents. That’s a big factor. As long as we can ensure, working with Nottingham, that we can actually deliver, it is confidence.”
The city’s universities will also play a big part in helping to attracting new business, and thus retain talent. At present only about 2,500 graduates stay each year.
Bishop says: “It’s the intellectual capital they bring. I have been to awards ceremonies where they celebrate the commercialisation of their research and development. It’s a huge filip to the growth sectors we have, the life sciences, the medical inventions that have been mainstreamed.
“Moving into commercial ventures is a fundamental part of our economic transformation. The creative quarter, the medical school and everything that’s goes with it.”
Reinvigorating Nottingham’s shop window
The 200-metre walk between Nottingham city centre and the train station is the most important area of redevelopment of the city centre and its shop window for new investment.
But the area around Broadmarsh is anything but welcoming.
“That’s the shop window of Nottingham, but people arrive and you almost want them to wear a blindfold for the 15 minutes to the city centre,” says Keith Lown, principal lecturer, school of architecture, design and the built environment, Nottingham Trent University
But the city is on the cusp of seeing the development it needs.
David Bishop, corporate director of development at Nottingham City Council, says it will commit to the shopping centre redevelopment, in a joint venture with intu, at the beginning of next year.
Meanwhile, the existing multi-story car park is being demolished, and a massive redevelopment and reposition of the city’s roads and public realms are planned.
Bishop said: “We are there now, we are starting to munch our way through this horrible thing. We intend to commit to the shopping centre scheme just after Christmas and the £60m college starts next summer, and we are transforming the roads in the whole area.”
Vivienne Clements, director, Henry Boot Developments, sees the redevelopment of the public realm between the station and town centre as fundamental to the city’s future success.
“The vibrancy of the city centre attracts your graduates and office occupiers, and you have to have that in the early evening too,” she said.
“Your public realm is essential, people do not come to the city centre just to shop, and Broadmarsh will be a big part in achieving that.
“Sheffield has a massive retention rate in its universities, and part of that is the Peak District. It’s part of that bigger life package. Broadmarsh is a part of that chain.”
Bishop says numerous conversations are already happening with occupiers and developers for the space around the station.
He said: “Things are starting to happen in anticipation of that already… I just want to get ahead a year, and get the last question about it ever happening disappearing.”
“If you are going to make a forward commitment, you want to know it’s going to be delivered”
The council and private developers need to work together to give occupiers and other players the confidence to sign up to new developments, says Vivienne Clements, director at Henry Boot Developments.
Henry Boot is one of the most active developers in the city, and has recently bought the Philip Morris factory for a speculative redevelopment.
Clements says “gathering momentum” in transactions would help them develop more in the city.
“When we work with the city council, occupiers or otherwise, we want to see everyone engaging and trying to get to that endgame as quickly as possible.”
She said the main thing occupiers want is certainty – and the council can work with developers to ensure that and encourage more development.
“They [the council] need to understand where their skill set lies, and where the skillset lies in the private sector,” she said.
“If that is aligned, and each party knows that they are bringing to the table, they can rely on the private sector to deliver in a time scale and confidence, knowing the private sector has the skills and the investment.
“It has the ability to dialogue with the other members of the private sector, and that is what people are demanding now, because if you are going to make a forward commitment, you want to know it is going to be delivered.”
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