Atenor on the bus for west London resi scheme

Belgian investor Atenor has teamed up with a joint venture between John Hitchcox’s YOO and transport group Ascendal to kick-start the redevelopment of a 1.5-acre site in west London. The deal, for an undisclosed sum, would see the site of Westbourne Park Bus Garage, W9, reconfigured to make way for a residential-led, mixed-use development. Westbourne Park Bus Garage is the main depot for Tower Transit and RATP Dev’s west London bus operations. The garage would remain in operation but would be reconfigured to free up the triangular site fronting the Grand Union Canal and Great Western Road.  Atenor, which is listed on the Euronext Brussels stock exchange, will lead the project day-to-day. The deal marks its second move into the London development market after buying Fleet House, EC4, in early 2022. Atenor secured planning permission for a partial demolition and extension of the city office building in January. Announcing the Westbourne Park deal at MIPIM, Eoin Conroy, country director UK at Atenor, said: “This collaboration with Ascendal and YOO offers an exceptional opportunity to unlock the development of a high-quality, sustainable regeneration project in this part of West London. As well as underlining our commitment to grow and diversify Atenor’s London development pipeline, the opportunity is very much in keeping with our approach to build strong partnerships in order to deliver highly sustainable urban regeneration projects which deliver positive social and economic impact. We very much look forward to working with and listening to the local community, Westminster Council and our project partners in the months ahead.” Ascendal Group and YOO’s jv, called AYR, is focusing on creating communities around transport hubs. Ascendal operates buses in three continents, including as the operating partner to Hong Kong’s Bravo Transport, owner of Citybus. Founder and chairman Adam Leishman said: “Ascendal’s focus on real estate through the joint venture AYR, is born from a belief that transport systems only truly deliver the best value when they are planned hand-in-hand with the wider development of a city. Today’s announcement represents a meaningful step towards creating a unique ‘city-village’ London quarter founded on the principles of exceptional design, connectivity and community and celebrating the location’s heritage of nature, art and transport.” To send feedback, e-mail julia.cahill@eg.co.uk or tweet @EGJuliaC or @EGPropertyNews