The contrast at the moment seems to be more stark than ever, although with over 40 years in the property profession, I have seen areas gentrify and deteriorate, sometimes at quite alarming rates
We are regularly told that “the High Street” is dead and people believe that the move to online trading is not just inevitable, but it is happening rapidly. It is fair to say that some High Streets have not recovered from the pandemic – but I would venture to say that most of these were teetering beforehand, and possibly before online trade took a foothold. For many who died “from covid”, there were additional complications in place beforehand and covid was more of contributory factor than the major cause of death for these unfortunate souls.
I think the same is true of many retail locations. In the northeast I call as my witnesses Shields Road in Byker, Gateshead High Street and Newgate Street in Bishop Auckland. All of these had been affected by different factors that were around long before covid and long before online trade (which may not be quite the spike you think).
Certainly Newgate Street in Bishop Auckland was effected badly by the opening of Tindale Retail Park, Shields Road Byker has lost out to the resurgence of Chillingham Road (as well as the Newcastle Retail Park on Fossway) and Gateshead High Street suffered firstly when Eldon Square in Newcastle was built and became very accessible from Gateshead with the new metro line (as it was in 1980), and then further hit by the development of the Metro Centre later in the 1980’s.
But is it just retail that is affected by location? I read in the middle of August that the Glassworks student accommodation Coquet Street Shieldfield, comprising 270 beds, has collapsed into administration.
The Evening Chronicle news article describes the block as being in Ouseburn and this is a little bit of a misnomer, because rather like Christopher Robin’s stair, “it isn’t really anywhere, its somewhere else instead”- but I think Shieldfield would be a more accurate description. It has become such a well known phrase that it became the title of a tv programme – “Location, Location, Location” and this certainly seems to be the case here. What was missing around Glassworks? Why are students still keen to live in Jesmond (to the irritation of full-time owner-occupiers)? Because there is more there.
Jesmond does offer good shopping facilities with Tesco, Waitrose and Sainsburys all represented, 2 Metro Stations giving fast access into Newcastle for parties or to other student houses and of course the plethora of pubs and other drinking venues on Osborne Road. Coquet Street wasn’t and still isn’t so well served.
BIV Bowes has ben recently engaged to consider the redevelopment of two sites of which are within a mile of the City Centre, and the original brief was to consider offices. We have advised that offices in these particular locations (I can’t say any more due to confidentially at present) would not necessarily be viable. In one of the locations it is close to where over 50,000 square feet of office space remains largely unlet despite being built to a very high standard and offering onsite parking. I feel there are better alternatives and have put these to our client for their consideration – time will tell if our advice is accepted and followed up on.
The whole point of this is that offices work, retail works, residential works – but each in its right place. The right building in the right place, at the right price, built at the right time to meet market demand.
