Developing Leale's Yard now is 'commercial suicide'

In case you missed it, the long awaited redevelopment of a key northern area is unlikely to go ahead anytime soon, it has been confirmed by BBC Radio Guernsey.

In a report today, the station said:

The head of the Channel Islands Co-op says developing on a plot of land in the Vale is unlikely in the short term, and would currently be "commercial suicide".

Colin Macleod, CEO Channel Islands Co-op, says the company regrets purchasing the land at Leale's Yard in the Vale, which has had planning permission for 400 homes since 2016.

Mr Macleod says housing developers were unlikely to want to build on the site in the current economic climate, and the Co-op was not going to try and build the homes themselves - which shareholders understood.

"Our members do not expect us to take the sort of risk that developers take. We're not qualified to do it and they understand the economy doesn't represent too much in the way of encouragement right now," he said.

 When the society initially launched its latest plans for the Bridge, it said:

The vision is for The Bridge to become a vibrant, viable town centre and to truly fulfil its role as the Island’s second main centre.

The Bridge frontage will be the heart of the centre extending westwards into the Leale’s Yard Quarter, with a large shared surface plaza uniting The Bridge with St Sampson’s Harbour.