Nathan Kirsh Bids For Minerva
Property Week reports that South African investor Nathan Kirsh has made a bid to takeover Minerva with a 50p per share cash offer valuing the company at £84.5m.
He made the bid last night through the vehicle Kifin, which makes investments for the benefit of Nathan Kirsh and his family.
Kifin said the offer is at a premium of 30.7% to Minerva's closing price yesterday of 38.25p and a 52% premium to the average closing price of 32.9p per Minerva share for the three months up to yesterday.
Minerva are involved in the ill fated
Park Place scheme.
Labels: croydon council, decay, Minerva, park place
Park Place Finally Dies
In
March 2008 I wrote:
"
It looks like the Park Place development scheme has collapsed (or rather is going to collapse).
How many years has the council (both Labour and Tory) tried to kid us that this development would ever happen?
Who seriously believed that this scheme would ever get off the ground?
How many other development schemes touted by the council are going to fail to get off the ground?
The failure of Croydon council to plan effectively has led to the degradation and decay of the area designated for the development, eg St George's Walk. Local businesses, such as Turtle's, have been under threat of closure because of this scheme."
In
May 2005 I wrote that:
"
Turtle's, one of Croydon's best known independent stores, is searching for new premises after compulsory purchase orders were issued to acquire the land for the £500M Park Place shopping centre."
In
February 2005 I wrote about Minerva funding Croydon Council's fight against the Whitgift shopping centre expansion plans proposed by Minerva's rivals, who own the Whitgift. I stated then that this must surely raise reservations about the council's independence.
In
October 2008 I wrote:
"
The Park Place development is dead in the water, yet it is still destroying the heart of Croydon."
Today we finally read the obituary of this unwanted, and unloved, scheme.
Property Week report that Croydon Council is to cancel its development agreement with Minerva to develop Park Place, after it said there was "virtually no chance" that Minerva could develop the scheme.
Have I not been saying the self same thing for quite some time?
The council without a single trace of irony are quoted:
"
Rather than prolong the inactivity that has blighted the site for so long, the council now intends drawing up a revised strategy for the site which will include attracting John Lewis to the town centre. It is hoped that a new CPO will not be necessary but this will be a fall back position when a new development partner is in place".
Croydon council leader Mike Fisher, said:
"
I very much hope that we do not have to resort to CPO proceedings as this will only further prolong the delay that has blighted the area and devastated so many of the traders who used to operate in St George's Walk, but if another CPO is the only way we will follow that route to ensure the area is regenerated."
The above comments from Fisher and the council beggar belief. They are the ones responsible for ripping the heart out of the centre of Croydon, and inflicting the blight that will remain for decades to come.
I would also remind them that were it not for their pig headed intransigence the Gateway development, that they sought to block for so long, would have long since been completed. Instead, thanks to their insistence in backing the wrong horse, they have succeeded in ensuring that the redevelopment has been delayed further as a result of the financial and property crisis. Thus adding another blighted area to the centre of Croydon.
The people of Croydon have been ill served by their council over the past decade, there is not a cat's chance in hell that the council are capable of reversing the blight that is eroding the heart of Croydon.
Labels: croydon council, croydon gateway, Minerva, park place
Developments Run Out of Money
As predicted on this site on
numerous occasions, according to the
Croydon Guardian:
"
Minerva, the company behind the £500m Park Place project, has admitted it needs someone to bail it out otherwise the development will not happen."
Why have the successive councils that have "ruled" Croydon insisted on favouring property companies that offer fancy ego boosting schemes, that have not got a chance in hell of becoming reality?
Croydon Council's stubborn delaying tactics over the Gateway development appear to be causing Stanhope Schroders problems as well.
Well done the council, serving their needs before the needs of the citizens of Croydon!
Labels: croydon council, croydon gateway, gateway, Minerva, park place, stanhope schroders
Park Place Folly Destroying The Heart of Croydon
One of Croydon's oldest family businesses, Turtle's, is to close its doors for the last time on Christmas Eve.
The future of the business has been uncertain for the past couple of years since compulsory purchase orders were issued on Park Street shops to allow Minerva's massive Park Place retail development to go ahead.
The lease on the store which is famous for selling its huge range of hardware and tools, is coming to an end.
And owner Jeremy Turtle told the Advertiser renewing it was not really an option.
Mr Turtle said: "I am 65 and have been involved in the business for 44 years.
"I want to retire and there is nobody else in the family who is interested in taking over, so there is no choice but to close.
"Business has not been very good recently and I think it has been affected by the uncertainty. There is little chance of selling it as a going concern."
The store employs around 30 people, many of them on a part-time basis.
Mr Turtle said: "We are all very upset but you can't go on forever. I am very disappointed for my customers."
Source
Croydon AdvertiserThe Park Place development is dead in the water, yet it is still destroying the heart of Croydon.
Labels: croydon council, Minerva, park place, Turtles
Park Place Dead In The Water
In
May 2008 I noted the following:
"
Aside from our very naive council, who seriously believes that this development will ever take place in the next five years?
This scheme is sinking fast, and is dragging down local businesses and the environment with it (see my article in March 2008 for further background)."
In
March 2008 I stated:
"
How many years has the council (both Labour and Tory) tried to kid us that this development would ever happen?
Who seriously believed that this scheme would ever get off the ground?"
In
February 2005 I questioned the independence of Croydon Council:
"
To my view, this must surely raise reservations about the council's independence.
As ever, the citizens of Croydon are left wondering when the creeping blight emanating from the town centre will be eradicated.
In my view, we are not being well served."
The latest report in
The Croydon Advertiser indicates that I was right to be cynical about this project.
Quote:
"
Croydon's flagship Park Place development will be delayed yet again and radically rethought, it has emerged this week.
Instead of this autumn, it will now be next year before any revised application emerges for the massive town centre scheme - and it looks set to be very different to previous plans."
This project is going absolutely nowhere, and dragging the centre of Croydon and St George's Walk down with it!
Surely even Croydon Council cannot be so naive as to believe that this scheme is ever going to get off the ground?
Why has the council allowed the centre of Croydon to hemorrhage for a "pie in the sky" scheme with no future?
Labels: croydon council, decay, Minerva, park place, st george's walk
Minerva Offer Collapses
In July I noted that Minerva, the developer which Croydon Council expect to develop Park Place, had
received an offer from Limitless.
Property Week reports today that:
"
Shares in listed developer Minerva fell 33% to 52p this morning after Limitless withdrew its prospective takeover offer.
The development arm of the Dubai World sovereign wealth fund told the London Stock Exchange this morning that it had withdrawn its 160p-a-share offer."
I do not see that this is good news for the Park Place development as, despite whatever Minerva claim, their financial position is now weakened.
Labels: croydon council, decay, Minerva, park place, st george's walk
Limitless Offer for Minerva
Property Week reports that the developer Minerva has received a £258M cash offer from Dubai property company, Limitless.
As I noted back in May, this bid may well affect the much delayed plans for
Park Place.
The original plan was for work on Park Place to start in spring this year, with completion expected in 2012.
Croydon council now claim that it does not expect to receive a new planning application from developer Minerva until October or November this year.
Labels: croydon council, Minerva, park place, regeneration
Flower Baskets
I am pleased to see Croydon Council have started to festoon the town centre with flowers, both in hanging baskets and ground based tubs.
I do hope that they remember that the plants will need to be watered regularly though!
Labels: croydon council, flowers
Enormous Crocus Approved
As noted on this site
in February, Croydon Council have given Berkeley Homes the green light to build a £140M 44-storey tower in Croydon.
The development at Wellesley Square will include a total of 739 flats built across five blocks.
However,
Property Week reports that the tower, designed by Rolfe Judd architects, has been designed to resemble a crocus. Seemingly, the name 'Croydon' was derived from the Latin for crocus and valley.
Labels: berkeley homes, croydon council, wellesley road
Croydon Selects John Laing
Property Week reports that Croydon Council has selected John Laing Projects and Developments as its preferred partner for a £450M regeneration.
John Laing beat competition from Land Securities Trillium to be selected as Croydon Council's partner to redevelop four council-owned sites and build the council a new headquarters.
The cabinet is set to approve the creation of the 50:50 urban regeneration vehicle on 9 June.
The council said:
"
Through setting up a limited liability partnership in which the council and its selected private sector investment partner would each have a 50% stake (through the authority's land assets and the partner’s cash) the council will be able to ensure regeneration takes place in the way it wants and to realise much greater value from the proceeds."
Councillor Tim Pollard said:
"
It won't have escaped anyone's notice that some of the most successful companies in the UK are property developers. The council has for some time sold sites to the highest bidder only for developers to take all the profit when land is developed.
The solution we expect to engineer with John Laing will ensure we get a big slice of the future action and make a lasting contribution to Croydon's regeneration."
I might have more faith in the council's and Tim Pollard's abilities to regenerate Croydon, were it not for their obsession with trying to build an
arena in Croydon.
Labels: croydon council, decay, regeneration
Park Place Going Nowhere
The
Croydon Guardian reports that the much vaunted Park Place scheme, that has caused the decay of St George's Walk, has been delayed again.
The original plan was for work on Park Place to start in spring this year, with completion expected in 2012.
Croydon council now claim that it does not expect to receive a new planning application from developer Minerva until October or November this year.
Whilst that is going on it seems that
Minerva may well be taken over.
Aside from our very naive council, who seriously believes that this development will ever take place in the next five years?
This scheme is sinking fast, and is dragging down local businesses and the environment with it (see my article in
March 2008 for further background).
Labels: croydon council, decay, Minerva, park place, st george's walk
The Consultation
There appears to be a consultation exercise going on in Croydon at the moment, wrt plans for Wellesley Road etc.
Go to the library and ask for a copy of the Summary and Comment form, the last date for comment and feedback is 14th April.
Labels: croydon, croydon council, decay
Park Place Collapse
It looks like the
Park Place development scheme has collapsed (or rather is going to collapse).
How many years has the council (both Labour and Tory) tried to kid us that this development would ever happen?
Who seriously believed that this scheme would ever get off the ground?
How many other development schemes touted by the council are going to fail to get off the ground?
The failure of Croydon council to plan effectively has led to the degradation and decay of the area designated for the development, eg St George's Walk. Local businesses, such as Turtle's, have been under threat of closure because of this scheme.
In
May 2005 I wrote that:
"
Turtle's, one of Croydon's best known independent stores, is searching for new premises after compulsory purchase orders were issued to acquire the land for the £500M Park Place shopping centre."
In
February 2005 I wrote about Minerva funding Croydon Council's fight against the Whitgift shopping centre expansion plans proposed by Minerva's rivals, who own the Whitgift. I stated then that this must surely raise reservations about the council's independence.
Interestingly, John Prescott crushed the rival scheme in
March 2006; Andrew Rosenfeld (owner of Minerva) having loaned £1M to Labour.
According to The Times:
"
Prescott killed the rival scheme, put forward by a consortium called Whitgift, by rejecting its appeal against an earlier refusal by inspectors to give it planning permission."
Prescott denied this and another allegation. Prescott confirmed that he had received the planning applications, but said he felt the decisions should be made locally.
"
I passed it over to Croydon and (the other application) City of London Corporation.
They made the decision, not me."
It is time that the council stopped kowtowing to the developers, and asserted a robust and coherent development policy that served the interests of the people who actually live and work in Croydon.
Labels: croydon council, decay, Minerva, park place, regeneration, st george's walk, Turtles
Diamonds In The Sky
"
A bid to transform Croydon's skyline with four new diamond shaped skyscrapers will be officially launched at a property festival in Cannes."
An interesting idea, but I shall believe it when I see it!
Here is an artist's impression of the plans:
Labels: cherry orchard road, croydon, croydon council
Taking The Piss?
I see that
The Guardian (the broadsheet not the local rag) notes that Croydon has "improved no end".
Are they taking the piss?
Labels: croydon
