Competition for eco-towns hots up as top players join forces

Some of the biggest names in the regeneration and property worlds have joined together to bid to build an eco-town – without having any land to develop it on.

It is understood a 15-strong team, including former Stanhope director Vincent Wang, architect Sir Terry Farrell, social care personality Lord Victor Adebowale and environmental engineer Faber Maunsell, submitted a bid to the Communities department at the end of last year.

The group goes under the name of Eco Towns Consortium, and covers all disciplines needed to set up a new town from scratch. It includes developers Grosvenor, architects Conran + Partners and HTA, property agent Savills, major accounting and law firms, risk managers Aon, steel company Corus and environmental services firm Veolia.

Despite having no specific site to propose, the team is thought to be confident it will find work. Sources point to teaming up with the many land owners that have submitted bids without a development team. No one from the consortium was available to comment.

The news comes following a Regenerate investigation, which has uncovered the location and proposers of over half the potential eco-towns. The CLG has said it received over 50 bids. An announcement on the 10 chosen sites, thought to include one eco-town in every region around the country, is expected in February, but sources indicate the decision might be delayed until early March.

Proposers for the eco-towns include: UK Coal Plc, Cornwall County Council, the Ministry of Defence, Kilbride Properties, minerals company Imerys and a joint bid by Redrow and Wates.

The majority of proposers are from the private sector but there are a number of joint public/ private bids. These include Co-Operative Estates with English Partnerships for a site near Great Glen on the outskirts of Leicester for up to 15,000 people as well as Trafford council teaming up with Shell on a disused petrochemical site in Carrington, south Manchester. There are also a number of bids from the public sector, including from East Lindsey Council to develop a former airfield near Manby in Lincolnshire.

North-east-based Banks Developments has submitted proposals for four eco-towns in England and one in Scotland. The masterplanner for several of these schemes is David Lock, the man who drew up the eco-towns prospectus. Planning consultant Barton Wilmore has been signed up to work on seven eco-towns – over half are existing schemes.

Around a third of the sites uncovered by Regenerate are located in the South-east of England, while the North East Regional Assembly said it knew of three proposed in the region. The East Midlands Regional Assembly said it was aware of four in the area, while just one in the North-west has been discovered so far.

Meanwhile, battle lines are being drawn across the country as local councils, regional assemblies and MPs prepare to go head to head with the government following the announcement of the 10 eco-towns. The chairman of one influential regional assembly has already vowed to refuse to take part in a partial review of the Regional Spatial Strategy, which would be vital for eco-towns to eventually receive planning permission. The spatial strategy sets housing targets for the region.

Housing minister Yvette Cooper said in response to a parliamentary question earlier this month that the government would force eco-towns through using powers in the New Towns Act, which bypasses the local planning system, if necessary.

Public feeling is already running high in certain areas. Protest groups say that a large number of the schemes are simply re-worked versions of developments already turned down by planning authorities.