Stellar Growth further diversifies its portfolio with multi-purpose Merseyside land acquisition
Stellar has successfully acquired approximately 17 hectares of land in Formby, Merseyside on behalf of its Growth investors.
The site offers medium-term, asset-backed investment opportunities across a range of sectors including sports and leisure facilities.
Formby Location
Situated close to the sea and the countryside, Formby is an attractive residential area. It is located on the outskirts of the Liverpool/Manchester region. Formby is considered one of the most desirable places to live in the north west and serves as a popular tourist destination.
Formby is located in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton. Sefton provides a wide range of leisure pursuits and hosts six championship golf courses. These include Royal Birkdale, which has been the most regular venue for the Open Championship other than St Andrews.
The Site
The site comprises a substantial land holding extending c.17 hectares and comprising two separate entities.
The first area comprises c.5 hectares, including the former Formby Football Club ground and 3 existing 3G football pitches. The sports facilities benefit from planning permission for change of use.
Secondly, there is an area of c.12 hectares of arable land and further amenity grassland.
Our Strategy
We are working in conjunction with an experienced planning team which has expertise in the planning aspects of major mixed-use developments.
Our objective is to implement a two-tiered planning strategy for this project.
In the first stage, our focus is to acquire planning permission to utilise parts of the land for sport and recreation use.
In addition, we are preparing the reports required to support a planning application and expect a first sale of land by the end of 2020. Subsequent sales of land over a further three-year period.
We will also be working in conjunction with the local authorities to achieve all necessary planning for further development that will enable us to maximise the full potential of the asset.
We expect the Formby development project to offer a number of benefits to the local community. In addition to providing much needed sports and leisure facilities, the site will also offer a range of employment opportunities for people across the district.
Next Steps
So far, discussions with the local authority have been positive in obtaining planning permission to utilise parts of the land. We expect the partnership to generate income profits of at least 5% per annum for investors.
We are confident that the partnership will more than achieve its target return to investors from year two onwards.
