Native Land has secured an £18.5m funding arrangement with Grosvenor for the 200,000 sq ft St Mary’s Wharf mixed-use development on brownfield land in the centre of Guildford.
The 1.7-acre riverside site, which was formerly a Debenhams department store, will house 185 private and affordable homes in addition to 21,000 sq ft of restaurant and business space.
The Squire & Partners-designed scheme will see the site’s existing basement retained and reused and the fossil-fuel-free development will be net zero carbon in operation.
An environmental performance incentive has been included within the funding facility, encouraging both partners to ensure the scheme achieves high environmental credentials.
Alasdair Nicholls, chief executive of Native Land, said: “Both Grosvenor and Native Land share the same best-in-class aspirations for urban design and environmental standards in our developments. St Mary’s Wharf is another example of Native Land’s track record of regenerating fundamentally strong UK towns and capital city centres. We are delighted to be investing in Guildford, creating jobs and the opportunity for skills development in the delivery of a significant number of high quality and sustainable homes.”
Robert Harris, project director at Native Land, added: “This co-investment with our long-standing partner, Grosvenor, underscores the strength of our vision for St Mary’s Wharf. The development will deliver exceptional high quality housing and urban regeneration in a strong town with a severely supply constrained market.”
Rachel Dickie, executive director of investment at Grosvenor, said: “We are pleased to build on our work to date with Native Land, supporting the evolution of Guildford town centre and the creation of much needed new housing. Since launching our debt strategy last year, we have been exploring opportunities for our funding to meet our wider social and environmental goals.
“Our track record of successful projects with Native Land has given us the confidence to include an environmental performance incentive in this facility. We look forward to working together as the scheme progresses to embed high levels of sustainability throughout the project.”
