Page 43 - 2018 Kent Property Marke Report

developed specialisms in construction, hospitality, creative industries, health & beauty and business & financial services which fits well with the needs of many businesses in the area. The attributes of the area are increasingly becoming recognised – creative, connected and coastal.
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Thanet
Thanet’s popularity continues to grow with the price of houses rising by 50% in the five-year period 2012-2017. Anecdotal evidence suggests some of this is driven by the London housing market with people relocating and working closer to home. Thanet’s improved connectivity is also driving entrepreneurs to set up businesses in the district, not only for local market places but nationally and internationally.
In order to drive growth, Thanet District Council recognises the importance of regeneration and the benefits to all those who live, work and learn in the district. Inward investment enquiries are growing significantly with London based enquiries of particular note, both to relocate or
for expansion. Some potential investors are returning to Thanet – having grown up in the area and see the benefits of Thanet’s proximity to the continent and London.
A thriving tourism and leisure sector is another integral part of Thanet’s growing economy. Trips to the popular and award-winning seaside resorts of Margate, Broadstairs and Ramsgate rose 16% between 2013 and 2015 despite visitors to England registering a 5% drop. Thanet’s 19 miles of spectacular coastline and its cultural offer attracted 3.9m trips to the area in 2015. This led to a 19.4% increase in value of the sector to the district (2013-2015). Margate’s cultural resurgence has helped regenerate the Old Town, comprising an array of independent shops, galleries and eateries and the renowned Turner Contemporary gallery. The gallery has hosted a significant number of visitors and has generated huge amounts of national and international attention for the popular seaside resort, so much so that the Turner Prize 2019 will be awarded in Margate.
Thanet is attracting new investment in the form of boutique hotels, guest houses, restaurants, cafés and outdoor leisure attractions alongside new and relocating businesses.
Margate Old Town and Ramsgate Harbour and marina have also been transformed over this period. Thanet’s resorts long known appeal is being rediscovered and it goes far beyond the bygone perception of the traditional British seaside holiday. It is now much broader, attracting individuals and businesses looking to achieve the all-important work-life balance whilst remaining a great place to holiday. Those relocating to Thanet realise that they can benefit from a coastal location, within easy reach and travel time to London and supported by the excellent High Speed One service. Margate, currently being referred to as ‘Shoreditch-on-Sea‘, thanks primarily to the 84% increase in creative businesses
in Thanet from 2012 to 2016. Business confidence levels are high with 80% of creatives surveyed saying they feel confident about the future of their business
Source: Thanet’s New Wave – The creative force regeneration our towns 2016).
Regeneration continues apace – Margate’s Dreamland received significant private sector investment and re-opened in May 2017 as a major attraction. Following Thanet District Council’s decision in 2003 to secure the vacant Dreamland site, a new era is upon one of Britain’s oldest surviving amusement parks. As well as being a theme park, Dreamland is also a major music venue and hosted the Gorillaz ‘Demon Dayz’ Festival in June 2017 with the summer of 2018 having a real festival feeling after a year of events. The investors have announced their intention to open a 120 bedroom hotel adjacent to the site.
The Royal Harbour in Ramsgate is a popular tourist destination for visitors from across the UK and abroad. The only Royal Harbour in Britain is a busy destination containing 700 leisure berths, with four gold anchors awarded by the Yacht Harbour Association. It caters for visiting vessels, as well as those based there year-round and is home to a large fishing fleet. The popular waterfront hosts a diverse offering of boutique cafés and restaurants right on the quayside
with views across the marina. Ramsgate is also recognised as one of only ten national Heritage Action Zones by Historic England acknowledging Ramsgate’s rich historic environment supporting economic growth.
The Dickensian town of Broadstairs, steeped in stories, continues to draw crowds with its famous ‘retro’ ice cream parlours and attractive cottages adding to its unique and
timeless seaside charm. The packed annual calendar of events, including Broadstairs Folk Week and Food Festival, keep the town on any visitor itinerary. The Yarrow Hotel, which opened in 2016 in a renovated Jacobethan-style building within the East Kent College campus, is the first in the UK to be owned and run by a further education college. In 2017 it was honoured in the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) awards for the South East, winning
the prize in the commercial category and in 2018 it was awarded four stars status as part of Visit England’s Quality Assurance scheme. It is staffed partly by apprentices from the College’s hospitality courses and features a restaurant, spa and salon.
Thanet’s strong appeal as a film location continues with local settings for fashion shoots to pop videos to full-length feature films. Sir Michael Caine was in Margate filming for the new release, Night at Hatton Garden, while Sky Arts spent five days in June filming Landscape Artist of the
Year at Viking Bay. Popular musicians Shawn Mendes and Emeli Sande both used Botany Bay, one of Thanet’s most distinctive beaches, as the backdrop for their music videos. Filming also took place for the new Nick Hornby adaptation, Juliet Naked, featuring Ethan Hawke, Chris O’Dowd and Rose Byrne. A substantial percentage of BBC and Channel
4 programming budgets are required to be spent outside London. Thanet’s visual appeal, proximity, affordability and creative flair make it an excellent choice for the creative agencies’ principal broadcasters when contracting for programme making. There is an opportunity to attract a small cluster of such creative production companies to Thanet which is a realistic ambition for the area.
Opportunities for commercial development continue to be offered at Manston Business Park. Building of light industrial units is currently underway for freehold sale and for rent. There is keen demand for workspace on this site with over 100 new units developed and sold since August 2014. Wahl UK is expanding operations to a 9,011m2 (97,000ft2) site at Manston which results from the company’s growth with the workforce expanding and the new building supporting continued expansion plans. East Kent Opportunities is a partnership between Kent County Council and Thanet District Council. Land is available that is ideal for existing businesses wishing to expand their current operations. It is well connected by dual carriageway to the motorway network.
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