City & Provincial Properties, the developers behind Europe’s largest music cluster, are redeveloping the disused Rutland Mills in Wakefield into a new complex, Tileyard North.

The buildings are all Grade II listed properties but will require significant restoration work as part of the new project after 20 years of unoccupancy. [emaillocker id=”71749″]

Paul Kempe, Director of City & Provincial Properties, described the details of the project at our recent High Streets Development Conference: “There are seven buildings and we have 3 years to complete them. We think we can develop Rutland Mills into a real destination for the city.”

Kempe described how the project will provide new placemaking for the area: “The central space within the mill buildings are going to be very much F&B driven, and they’re going to host events.”

The development will feature new office space which will be limited to creative firms. The development’s proximity to The Hepworth art gallery was a draw for City & Provincial which was a “major reason” for the firm’s decision to bring the scheme forward.

“What makes Wakefield unique is the arts and culture heritage,” said Olivia Colling, Director of Communications and Development at The Hepworth Wakefield. The Hepworth gallery is a project that was organised by the council back in 2003, intended to serve as a catalyst for the regeneration of the wider area.

The Hepworth opened in 2011, attracting over 1m visitors in its first year. “We now get about 250,000 a year,” said Colling, of that cohort, polling suggested the gallery brings in 80,000 to 90,000 people into the city annually.

Colling discussed the major obstacles to attracting more visitors and hence driving more footfall to Wakefield city centre: “Our biggest problems were one, perceptions of Wakefield and two that potential visitors didn’t feel like there was enough near us to sustain a whole day.”

The gallery has recently finished the largest sculpture festival in the UK, in collaboration with the Henry Moore Institute in Leeds; Yorkshire Sculpture International, with 1.4m million people engaging with the festival.

Claire Elliott, Service Director of Economic Growth and Skills at Wakefield Council described the council as having embraced this identity. She said: “We’ve recently completed a place marketing piece that rightly concluded that our cultural and sculpture offer gives us a real opportunity to position ourselves on a national and international level.”

Elliott described the challenges faced by Wakefield high street: “We’ve had an oversupply of retail space and there has been a disconnect between our old retail offer and our new retail offer.”

The council is utilizing government funding to revitalise its core, including investment from the Heritage Action Zone & Towns Fund and the Future High Streets Fund where the city’s application is moving to the next stage.

They have also utilised their capital programme to put £20m of funds into the city centre, to match those Wakefield is receiving from the Transforming Cities Fund. Elliott revealed the council’s intention to support more arts events in the town centre and build on their existing creative network.

David Codling, Wakefield Property Advisor at the council described details of the city’s masterplan that it seeks to implement via the funding it has received. Chantry House is a project for 60-80 residential units opposite the train station that the council is currently seeking development partners for.

Describing the current state of the High Street as being a “a street to nowhere”, Codling said the council intends to intervene to convert larger units to mixed-use. He also praised successful aspects of the council’s current offering including the Trinity Walk shopping center built in 2011, which he dubbed “very successful.”

Viability was seen as the primary challenge by Codling, who described difficulties with encouraging residential development: “In Wakefield, even our tertiary retail land value outguns residential, even the office market which is growing momentum again.”

The strong interventionist approach advocated by the council may enable Wakefield to overcome its structural difficulties and instead be defined by its clear cultural success.

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