Farnborough housing scheme cleared for take-off

Work has begun on a development of 476 new homes on one of the UK’s most significant aeronautical sites at Farnborough, Hampshire; a scheme that will have a finished worth of circa £85 million. The site, adjacent to Farnborough Business Park, has been purchased by Redrow Homes from SEGRO (formerly Slough Estates Plc).

Redrow’s 12-acre development, Farnborough Central, will feature a mix of 85 refurbished apartments in existing buildings of historic interest, plus 194 new-build apartments and 54 new townhouses that will be sympathetically designed with art deco and modernist influences.

The wider site formerly comprised the Royal Aircraft Establishment (RAE) and continues to be the home for the world famous Farnborough Aerodrome and the biennial Farnborough International Airshow, which attracts around 300,000 visitors every two years and celebrates its 60th anniversary in 2008.

For most of the last century the RAE provided employment for many thousands of people and was at the heart of British aeronautical research and innovation. The campus was closed and sold for redevelopment to SEGRO in 1999.

Detailed planning consent for Redrow’s residential scheme has just been granted by Rushmoor Borough Council and work has now begun on the first phase, comprising refurbishment of a building known as ‘Q153’ to create 32 apartments that will go on sale in September, with first legal completions anticipated in summer 2008.

The total of 476 new and refurbished homes includes a provision of 30% affordable housing (143 plots) and Redrow will also make financial contributions towards off-site open space, Special Protection Area mitigation and community centre improvements, plus North Hampshire Transportation Service and the Safe Routes to School initiative.

Redrow is also obliged to undertake highway improvements to provide access to the site at both the north and south gates, adjacent to Farnborough Road, as well as to provide a travel plan to each resident proposing alternative modes of transport to the motor car, this is expected to include a bicycle "pool" scheme.

Geoff Blake, land director for Basingstoke-based Redrow Homes (Southern), comments: “Farnborough Central will be a flagship scheme for Redrow and steering it through the planning process has required close consultation with many and varied stakeholders to address a variety of issues. With detailed planning consent now in place and full ownership of the site confirmed we are delighted to be on site and preparing the first of two existing buildings for very careful and sympathetic renovation.”

Redrow’s homes will be adjacent to the Park’s ‘heritage quarter’ and alongside two of the most interesting aeronautical legacies of the former RAE – a pair of Grade 1 listed wind tunnel buildings. The largest, a 24 ft wind tunnel, was used to test full-sized aircraft prototypes, while the transonic wind tunnel was used to test aircraft including Concorde. These buildings are being retained and restored by SEGRO.

Farnborough Business Park is one of the largest business development sites in the south east of England, with planning consent granted for 1.67 million square feet of business space. As well as over 200,000 sq ft of built office space it also includes a café, crèche and heritage centre, with a Village hotel due to open in autumn 2008.

Welcoming the start of residential development, Graeme Steer, development manager at SEGRO (Slough Estates Group), said: “The location of a residential site such as this, next to both the town centre and the business park, is unique. It will be a real benefit for future residents to be situated so close to employment opportunities and a number of key amenities such as the café, crèche and heritage centre.

“For decades the RAE site in Farnborough was known to be the home of tremendous scientific and technological innovation and so it will be great to see this combination of residential and business park helping to re-establish Farnborough as a key business destination.”

With sales of the first apartments at Farnborough Central due to be launched in September, would-be home owners can register their interest by logging on to Redrow.co.uk/developments/view/152.

For land and planning information from Redrow go to: Redrow.co.uk/cms/wrrd/land_planning.