Wed 26 / 02 / 20
Regenerating Brighton: Q+A with U+I
We asked property developer and investor, U+I, to talk about their projects in the city at Circus Street and Preston Barracks. Read on to find out more about what's going to be available and when!
By Mel Hickford of
Why did you choose Circus Street and Preston Barracks as your sites in Brighton?
U+I Group Plc is a property developer and investor, specialising in working with partners and communities; finding places that are right for community-focused regeneration and mixed-use development projects; focused on regenerating overlooked and underestimated urban places; unlocking potential and value that has not previously been identified.
Circus Street and Preston Barracks were both such sites; unloved and neglected for decades, and crying out for new life.
What will be available at Circus Street?
At Circus Street, we are turning a derelict municipal market into an innovation quarter, and a powerhouse for regeneration in the city centre. In the process, we're creating a sustainable, productive, healthy model of city life, with great public spaces, a lively, creative atmosphere and a real sense of community.
The Circus Street scheme will deliver 142 new homes, 450 managed student bedrooms and The Office at Circus Street - a 32,000 sq ft office building - as well as a number of workshop and retail opportunities.
This £130m PPP with Brighton and Hove City Council will also provide the local area with a new base for the internationally acclaimed South East Dance called The Dance Space which will include a theatre and studios catering for local community participation and attracting around 70,000 visitors and users per year.
Upon completion, Circus Street will have achieved over 400 new jobs, with more than £200m gross value added to the local economy in the next 10 years. There will be a big focus on travel by bike and foot, a push for green energy and residential design that encourages more communal, responsible, neighbourly living among tenants.
When will Circus Street be up and running?
Student accommodation - opened September 2019
Residential buildings - due to complete end of April 2020
Office building – due to complete end of June 2020
The Dance Space - South East Dance will be announcing their opening date, expected early 2021
What will be available at Preston Barracks?
Preston Barracks is one of three sites being regenerated in a partnership between U+I, the University of Brighton, and Brighton & Hove City Council. The ambition of the regeneration masterplan is to create a thriving addition to the Lewes Road which will contribute to employment, enterprise and entrepreneurialism; a place that people want to live, learn, work and be proud to be a part of.
The regeneration is providing much needed new homes, an innovation hub* for Brighton start-up businesses, new academic buildings, managed student accommodation, shops, cafes and car parking which have been designed around a new public green space. New routes will be created to provide better connectivity for neighbouring residential streets, such as Saunders Park View to the Lewes Road and Moulsecoomb Railway Station.
*In partnership with U+I, Plus X Brighton, the 50,000 sq. ft. innovation hub for start-ups and SME businesses, will create hundreds of new jobs and is supported by grant funding from Coast to Capital, the Local Enterprise Partnership. Brighton’s will be the second Plus X hub from U+I in a planned national network, as we explore opportunities to put Plus X facilities in our schemes in Manchester, Greenwich, Birmingham and Oxford.
The three sites on Lewes Road are: Preston Barracks; the existing Watt’s car park, and Mithras car park on the University of Brighton’s Moulsecoomb campus. This exciting mixed-use project will provide:
- 369 new homes
- 1,338 purpose-built student bedrooms in managed buildings
- A new Academic building
- New student union facilities
- Innovation Hub (50,000 sq. ft) for start-up businesses and entrepreneurs
- New shops, cafes and workshops
- New sport and recreation facilities for the University and public use including a gym and 1km running and fitness route
- Open areas to provide spaces for people to meet and socialise
- A new pedestrian bridge across the busy Lewes Road
- Car parking and improved transport infrastructure to support the development and improve the flow of traffic in a busy road network.
When will it all be up and running?
Preston Barracks:
- Innovation Hub (Plus X) – Opening March 2020
- Student accommodation (534 rooms) – Summer 2020
- Residential buildings (369 homes) – 2022
Mithras University of Brighton site:
- Student accommodation (804 rooms) – summer 2021
- Includes Student Union & fitness facilities
Watt's University of Brighton site:
- New multi-storey car park – opened May 2019
- New Academic building – summer 2021
- Pedestrian bridge – summer 2021
How can businesses find out more?
Circus Street
http://www.circusstreetbrighton.com
https://www.uandiplc.com/our-places/circus-street/
Preston Barracks
https://www.prestonbarracksconstruction.com
https://www.uandiplc.com/our-places/preston-barracks/
University of Brighton - The Big Build
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