27 Sep 2018 07:00
27 September 2018
Urban&Civic plc (the "Company")
Trading update including the sale of Gallagher Leisure Park, Bradford
Highlights:
· Sale of Gallagher Leisure Park, Bradford for £18 million, a purchaser's yield of 6.2%
· Good progress towards determination of Waterbeach planning application
· DfT's preferred corridor for the new Oxford to Cambridge Expressway, supports Company's pursuit for a conurbation of national significance at Calvert
· 1,650 plots comprising contracts completed on five parcels over the summer with agreement reached over a further four parcels
Gallagher Leisure Park:
Urban&Civic announces completion of the sale of Gallagher Leisure Park, Bradford, for a net consideration of £18 million, or a purchaser's yield of 6.2 per cent. The sale is expected to give rise to a profit over 30 September 2017 book value in excess of £1 million to be included in the forthcoming audited full year accounts. Proceeds of the sale, after repayment of project bank debt, amount to £12 million and will be reinvested in the Group's strategic portfolio where significant progress continues to be made.
Waterbeach and Calvert:
South Cambridgeshire District Council received recent confirmation that the Government Inspectors had found the proposed Local Plan to be sound. This paves the way for determination of the 6,500 unit application at Waterbeach, Cambridge, submitted jointly by the Secretary of State for Defence and Urban&Civic in February 2017. Moreover, the Department for Transport reported two weeks ago the preferred corridor for the new Oxford to Cambridge Expressway as running alongside the planned route of East West Rail to "revolutionise east-west connectivity" and unlock the development of new homes in a key high growth area. Urban&Civic has interests or working arrangements across 2,500 acres at Calvert, Buckinghamshire, at the centre of the proposed routing and at the point of crossing with HS2 between Birmingham and London. Calvert was identified by the National Infrastructure Commission as the best location west of Milton Keynes for a major new settlement within that corridor. The routing decision enables Urban&Civic to pursue a conurbation of national significance.
Serviced land parcels:
Recent experience also demonstrates the growing attraction of the Master Developer model to housebuilding customers. Urban&Civic provides infrastructured plots in well connected areas in the broader South East of England. Most often the sale of those plots is via a percentage participation on sale of completed houses, subject to minimum annual payments from housebuilders. Five new contracts were signed over the summer and agreement has been reached over four further parcels, including an initial two at Wintringham, St Neots, Huntingdonshire, for which Resolution to Grant was secured in 20 weeks in March 2018. The target remains for first household occupations at Wintringham before the end of next year.
The aggregate number of plots under the nine parcels totals 1,650, including 334 at Europa Way, Warwick, where Urban&Civic subsidiary Catesby was able to adopt the same serviced land model having invested in primary infrastructure on a 735 unit site in an area of good local demand. The ability to infrastructure projects below strategic scale is expected to competitively advantage Catesby relative to conventional land promoters.
The extent of the appetite is such that seven of the described agreements are with existing housebuilder customers, with two new additions. In all cases, terms are above previous budget. On completion of the outstanding agreements and not including Warwick, the Group will have approximately 2,850 plots under licence or deferred sale, representing 14 per cent of currently consented strategic holdings. Taking the minimum drawdown under those contracts, this equates to an average of 4 years 7 months forward sold.
The Company will announce its full year results for the period to 30 September 2018 on Thursday 29 November 2018.
For further information, please contact:
Urban&Civic plc 020 7509 5555
Nigel Hugill /David Wood
FTI Consulting 020 3727 1000
Giles Barrie / Dido Laurimore / Ellie Sweeney
urban&civic@fticonsulting.com
About Urban&Civic plc
Urban&Civic plc is an established UK property development and investment company listed on the London Stock Exchange's main market (UANC), with total assets valued at over £580 million (31 March 2018). Headquartered in London and with a network of regional offices, Urban&Civic's team is led by Nigel Hugill, CEO, and Robin Butler, Managing Director. The Company has significant in-house expertise across site assembly, planning, project management, delivery, community engagement and sales.
Strategic land constitutes the core of Urban&Civic's business model where, as Master Developer, it owns or has the stewardship of over 5,500 acres across seven sites in or close to Cambridge, Calvert, Corby, Huntingdon, Newark, Rugby and St. Neots. These sites will deliver approximately 34,500 new homes, in excess of seven million square feet of business space and at least fourteen primary and six secondary schools over the next approximately 15 years.
In addition and together with the Wellcome Trust, Urban&Civic has been selected to partner with Basingstoke and Deane Borough and Hampshire County Councils as Master Developer for the 3,500 new home site at Manydown, a planned exemplar strategic extension to Basingstoke, in Hampshire.