A NEW era dawned in York today after a developer revealed it was buying the Terry's site - and expected to create more than 2,000 jobs there.

York-based Grantside Ltd is understood to be paying parent company Kraft about £26 million for the former chocolate factory in Bishopthorpe Road.

Managing director Steve Davis said it was planning to convert the old Terry's office buildings into a prestige hotel, with a new spa and health club, creating around 200 jobs.

But he estimated in excess of 2,000 jobs could be created in the long-term through plans for 220,000 square feet of office buildings in a business park elsewhere on the site.

He said: "This would be approximately as many jobs as there were manufacturing jobs when Terry's was at its peak."

Mr Davis also revealed high-class apartments could be created in the landmark Grade II listed building overlooking York Racecourse, and there might also be a new art gallery and/or a museum.

"This could focus in on the Terry's family history and chocolate making," he said.

"We might get a chocolate maker back on the site on a very small scale to make luxury chocolates for sale on the museum."

But he stressed he had no plans to create York's answer to Cadbury World, a major tourist attraction in Birmingham.

Employers on the 51-acre site would also be encouraged to commission artists to produce artworks such as paintings, sculptures and installations, to create an art trail across the site.

He said Grantside, which has beaten more than 20 bidders in the race to acquire Terry's, expected to complete the purchase by the end of next month.

That could be before City of York Council has agreed on a final development brief, which is intended as a blueprint for prospective developers.

The authority published a draft brief last autumn, around the time the chocolate factory closed down with the loss of more than 300 jobs. It said the factory could be turned into a distinctive, high quality hotel which York currently lacked, but it also provided an excellent opportunity for a prestigious headquarters for an organisation.

Mr Davis revealed nationally-known hotel chains had already expressed an interest in the prospective Terry's hotel, but said he could not name names at this stage, while the primary aim for the offices was to attract a number of occupiers.

He said factors working in the Terry's site's favour for redevelopment was its close proximity to both the city centre and the A64, its attractive position overlooking the racecourse and York's excellent rail links with London.

Agents DTZ Debenham Tie Leung, who are handling the sale on behalf of Kraft, declined to comment, other than to confirm it had identified a preferred purchaser, and the matter was in the hands of solicitors.

Mr Davis said the development was being led by Grantside but in conjunction with joint venture partners, Helical Bar plc and Tritax Assets Ltd.

Major player behind landmark development

MANY people in York had probably never even heard of Grantside Ltd - before today.

But this privately owned property development and construction company, based at Holgate Park, has for some years been a major player in redevelopment schemes all over the north-east.

Since 1993, it has developed more than 1.5 million square feet of offices and almost 600,000 square feet of industrial and warehouse space, worth almost £400 million.

It has worked in partnerships and joint ventures with organisations including Durham County Council and Scottish Enterprise.

Many of its early developments involved the creation of call centres, although the emphasis has switched to back offices and government centres in recent years.

In 2001, it let a 60,000 square foot speculative call centre at Peterlee, Co Durham, to the Inland Revenue. In the same year, it started developing Quorum business centre near Newcastle.

The boss, Steve Davis, 33, is from the York area, and went to Woldgate School, in Pocklington. He now lives at Middlethorpe, in a home once owned by members of the Terry's family that overlooks the factory.

He says this played a part in his determination to buy the complex. He said: "If you see something every day, it makes you very keen to take it on board and make it a success for the future. You could say I've got a vested interest in ensuring this landmark continues for the future."

Officials eager to seize big 'chance for city's economy'

Mike Laycock examines what planners and residents would like to see on the Terry's site, and looks at the background of the developer which is now set to buy the factory.

WHEN the Terry's site was put on the market last autumn, the agent's glossy brochure claimed it offered "the best mixed use development opportunity in Yorkshire".

Within days of going on the market, DTZ Debenham Tie Leung received more than 100 inquiries from all over the country.

Dozens of interested parties subsequently went on tours of the factory site.

The complex includes 209,000 square feet of landmark listed buildings with potential for conversion to a variety of uses and another 366,000 square feet of production, warehouse and ancillary buildings.

But how it is redeveloped will be strongly guided by a development brief currently being drawn up by City of York Council.

Councillors have been determined since the day that Terry's closure was first announced to ensure that fresh jobs are created to compensate for those that have been lost.

A draft brief published last autumn said the redevelopment of the site represented a "major chance for the York economy", while conversion of the old factory buildings had to be appropriate and respect the buildings' fabric.

It said housing on the site might include combined live-work units for small businesses.

There might be space for community facilities such as a medical centre, children's daycare and open space.

The council then went out to consultation, sending 2,000 leaflets to homes in South Bank to obtain residents' views and organising a drop-in session at St Chad's Church Hall, which was attended by more than 100 local people.

Their suggestions included a hospital, an ambulance HQ, a police station, a complementary health centre and a prestige office development.

A council spokeswoman said today that 182 responses had been received from the public.

Officers are now going through and evaluating all the feedback before coming back to the planning committee this spring with a revised brief.

She said the document might be put to the committee next month, although this could be delayed until April.

After the brief had been agreed, it would be up to the prospective developer to submit a planning application.

Updated: 13:02 Thursday, February 02, 2006