By Andrew Batt:
The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson (pictured), has launched a new database detailing Greater London Authority (GLA) land assets as he continues to push for greater amounts of public land to be released for development, accelerating the number of homes being built in the capital and boosting the economy.
The GLA, which inherited over 600 hectares of land as a result of the Localism Act in April 2012, is one of the largest owners of public land in London. The new Land Assets Database details these holdings and includes information about the size and location of individual sites as well as aerial photographs. This is the first time these sites, and those of the GLA functional bodies, have been made publically available in this way, making it far easier for anyone with an interest in this land to find out more.
Since May 2012 the Mayor has already released more than 100 hectares of this land, with an economic value of £1 billion, and has committed that there will be a clear outcome agreed on all the GLA’s land by 2016.
However he wants to see even more public land being brought forward for development and is establishing a housing procurement panel to help public land owners, such as London boroughs and Government departments, fast-track the release of their land and avoid the expensive lengthy process they would otherwise have to take on if they acted alone.
Mayor Johnson said: "London is facing unprecedented demand for housing and public land is one of the most important tools we have in our battle to build more homes. However these sites are useless unless we unlock their massive potential. I want developers to trawl through this new database and bombard us with great ideas on how they can transform these unused pockets of land into exciting new places to live."
To view the GLA Land Assets Database go to: www.london.gov.uk/priorities/housing/land-and-assets/land-and-property-database
Andrew Batt, International Group Editor of PropertyGuru, wrote this story. To contact him about this or other stories email andrew@propertyguru.com.sg
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