hno:I don't really think there's much of a demand for apartments in Coventry, to be honest. The suburbs aren't far away, and there's not (At present) a real need to live in the city centre - most of the jobs are out on the outskirts! Maybe Friargate will change this, but I suspect that the majority of people would still prefer proper houses - apartments aren't (As yet) really aimed at families, and when you can get a 3 bedroomed semi for the same price as an apartment, a family would go for the house with a garden and perhaps a location close to the countryside.nice thread - LOL :hilarious
I was only looking forward to the Friars Road one anyway. It would have shown confidence towards Friarsgate development actually happening.
Indeed...I expect, like most places, Coventry's city living market is dominated by young professionals therefore if the overall city center becomes more attractive and the local economy does well enough.. reasonable medium term expectations... then given current planning polices, housing costs and population growth i'd expect city living to belatedly take off in Cov. That should help reinforce the revival of the city center and the local economy but i wouldn't expect an overnight transformation. Friargate etc will help to that ends.
Yes, Friargate is essential - if it happens - as Coventry doesn't have much of a "city living" market at the moment.I expect, like most places, Coventry's city living market is dominated by young professionals therefore if the overall city center becomes more attractive and the local economy does well enough.. reasonable medium term expectations... then given current planning polices, housing costs and population growth i'd expect city living to belatedly take off in Cov. That should help reinforce the revival of the city center and the local economy but i wouldn't expect an overnight transformation. Friargate etc will help to that ends.
... maybe reserved off-street parking space, better security, low maintenance and a city-centre lifestyle. None of which are offered by Earlsdon. (Earlsdon does a pretty good job of emulating a city centre lifestyle but it still has that small community/village feel about it).Why would anyone want a flat stuck down a dead end street next the ringroad when you can get an old terrace in Earlsdon for the same sort of money, but with far more on your doorstep.
I think people who subsitute a parking space for the ameneties and community feel Earlsdon has though. I take your point, but City living Coventry style isn't quite like what I'd want City living to be. Living next to a grey concrete ring road in a City Centre that is absolutely dead past 5.30pm isn't great. I sincerely hope Friargate does happen to help remedy this, but I won't hold my breath.... maybe reserved off-street parking space, better security, low maintenance and a city-centre lifestyle. None of which are offered by Earlsdon. (Earlsdon does a pretty good job of emulating a city centre lifestyle but it still has that small community/village feel about it).
Friar's Rd may be a dead end street at the moment but shrew investors tend to buy in before the ammenities arrive. That's the risk one takes. Friargate, on the doorstep to Friars Rd apartments, would offer all the trappings above + more and right on the doorstep - bars, restaurants, retail, a major transport hub and modern offices.
So, for me, a major investment in Friars Rd would have been a good indication of confidence with regards to Friargate actually happening.
Yep - i agree - Coventry 'city-living' isn't quite Manchester or London. But that could be good or bad. Maybe, Jerde will touch on that and make Coventry something different from the rest. More European would be great IMO but the weather and the people/culture are different. I'm not quite sure how well that would work over here.I think people who subsitute a parking space for the ameneties and community feel Earlsdon has though. I take your point, but City living Coventry style isn't quite like what I'd want City living to be. Living next to a grey concrete ring road in a City Centre that is absolutely dead past 5.30pm isn't great. I sincerely hope Friargate does happen to help remedy this, but I won't hold my breath.
I'd like these big plans to just emulate what is proved to work already, i.e. earlsdon. Im quite concerned that Jerde are going to be all forward thinking, and then in 40 years we'll be back where we all are now. Something major, but sensible needs to happen, tried and tested techniques,back to basics! How boring is that! At least it might work tho
Earlsdon works because it's a small urban street with a lot of population around it - and the environment is reasonably attractive. It is also a street that has pedestrians and car traffic - personally, I'd like to see more frontages between Earlsdon and the city centre, creating something similar to Eccleshall Road.I'd like these big plans to just emulate what is proved to work already, i.e. earlsdon. Im quite concerned that Jerde are going to be all forward thinking, and then in 40 years we'll be back where we all are now. Something major, but sensible needs to happen, tried and tested techniques,back to basics! How boring is that! At least it might work tho
Yep - one that needs changing. Why not into one that has urban streets, a population, attractive environment and streets with pedestrians and car traffic....The city centre is a different beast altogether!
Yes, and there's a lot of unoccupied apartment space available right now across a number of major cities with the major downturn in the property market and developers putting a hold on new inner city/ city centre projects. People are beginning to realise that houses are better value for money inch for inch. In Coventry, you are never more than 4 or 5 miles from the edge of the countryside anyway and you can be amongst the fields within 10 to 12 minutes of leaving the city centre quite easily, especially when heading south. In fact Coventry is pretty well located for many areas of natural beauty - the Costwolds are within an hour's drive, the southernmost point of the Peak District near Ashbourne is an hour away, and the Clent Hills are just 35 minutes drive away down the M42. OK, so there's not much on the city's doorstep, but Warwickshire sure beats the likes of Leciestershire, Northamptonshire and Bedfordshire in the beauty stakes.I don't really think there's much of a demand for apartments in Coventry, to be honest. The suburbs aren't far away, and there's not (At present) a real need to live in the city centre - most of the jobs are out on the outskirts! Maybe Friargate will change this, but I suspect that the majority of people would still prefer proper houses - apartments aren't (As yet) really aimed at families, and when you can get a 3 bedroomed semi for the same price as an apartment, a family would go for the house with a garden and perhaps a location close to the countryside.
Cheeky!'City life' in Coventry is hardly on a par with the more cosmopolitan-leaning culture of Manchester, Leeds, Cardiff, Liverpool, Sheffield or even York (and even Brum). True, most of these places are bigger and benefit from bigger indigenous 'assets' which Coventry can't really compete with, but at least they have put the effort in with some high-quality developments, especially on their watersides/waterfronts.
Turning Coventry into a commuter town to London and Brum (Which it currently very much isn't) would kill the city centre completely - having both these cities close by with strong business services is hugely benefital and has helped bring new business into the city. At the moment Coventry suffers from having no real city centre based "work" community - one reason why it's dead at 5:30, and probably one reason why there's no real demand for anymore city centre apartments. Friargate is purely offices, as is Severn Trent, Bishop's place & the office development in Cheylesmore. I'm hoping that some of the dead sites end up being office developments rather than nasty student flats.IMHO the best point at which to work things from is the station. One of Cov's biggest assets is proximity to Birmingham and London. Many people would want to live in Cov and commute to either of these two cities, then come home and spend their earnings in Cov.
The universities would also make good anchorage for development.
Cheeky!
I'm not having a pop at you here, but I think one problem we collectively have in the Midlands is whingeing - good things happen to other places, culture happens in other towns, money is spent elsewhere. Here in Brum we are still stricken by bouts of moaning that "we never get a fair share" on one hand, and "we don't want that sort of thing" on the other.
The thing is - most of the post-industrial cities are very similar - a growing services sector and a waning industrial sector, a lot of "working class" population, and local authorities that realise culture and infrastructure are among the most important things they council can invest in. The difference is that some councils and local populations have embraced this more than others. I suppose it is the old adage 'change or die'.
Interestingly, Manchester and Leeds (who both saw an explosion in city living development) have more of a sluggish apartment market with literally thousands on sale, whereas the slower Brum, Sheffield etc do not have so much of a problem.
I just think because of the nature of Coventry - a tiny city centre surrounded by residential areas - the concept of City Living will be difficult to implement here, hence why there's no real demand for apartments, with or without Friargate. You can live in a nice leafy area and be walking distance to Friargate and the city centre. I know people who commute to London and live in Earlsdon, which is popular, upmarket and close to the station. Brum is completely different, with a larger city centre that was once full of industrial buildings - and it's harder to live close to the offices/retail/leisure.A tram would help.
Coventry wouldn't be a commuter town, but it is foolish to think Cov is independent - even London isn't independent hence why certain businesses group around the miainline stations.
What I was suggesting is that the city living phenomenon, and all the amenity and infrastructure changes that come with it (Tesco Metro, bars, cafes, restaurants) would be best to start off near the station. Businesses that require rail travel, and residents that need easy access to Brum and London would therefore live there.
