We were about to offer, but major redevelopment works cause concern ...

[JustPretending]

Found a house we really like in our budget, good location BUT ...
While researching last night before 2nd viewing we found out the Large carpark (currently parking for the station) behind the property is to be redeveloped - mixed use retail & apartment blocks.

Not a disaster, arguably better than living by a forlorn carpark.

Hoever, work includes turning a narrow strip of unused land to the far side of next door's garden into a pedestrian walkway, connecting two rail stations a few streets apart in a more convenient way. It's reasonably wide & not v long, so not like dead man's alley.

Estate agent says no negative impact on ££ cos distance to station is reduced from 5 mins to 2 mins. Are we nuts to worry about it?

Would a lane so close put you off or not?

Yes. As would a retail place near the house, esp if it includes a tesco express or similar ... Delivery trucks beeping (when reversing) at 5 am

I think it would depend on context - if this were an attractive strip of land, planted with daffodils that i could see from my window and added to the 'setting' of my house then yes I would mind, but if it was a syringe filled, scratty bit of wasteland then some hard landscaping and a few benches might make it more attractive.

I would be more concerned about the mixed use development, as that has the potential to overlook your house and garden, cause light pollution, ruin your view and the delivery issues mentioned.

but in terms of value, a well designed mixed-use development with private ownership apartments will probably drive up your house value. Its down to whether you want to live with it or not?

Did you mean to write that Weed ' only saying 'cos you and I obviously have a very different outlook.

For me landscaping and daffs = nice whereas syringes = no no

I think the apartment blocks would be OK, i'd be a little concerned about the retail side of things. Why dont you contact the council to see the plans ?

ha! I was answering the question 'would having a pedestrian lane put you off' and my answer was 'depends what was there currently' - I would mind having a lane put in there if my existing was the daffs. (But you knew that!)

I wouldn't be worried about the lane provided it was going to be wide, well lit, etc i.e. not a muggers hangout.

I would be a lot more worried about the retail premises tbh. What kind of retail, when will they get deliveries (early mornings? weekends? delivery lorries are NOISY and often have those annoying "vehicle is reversing" alarms), where will their bins go and what will they contain (if it's food shops, their bins could lead to smells and vermin), etc.

Bit more delving shows lane is being rerouted another few houses away, which is reassuring. Next item is to delve more with council planning office. We really really like the house ...

Thanks for tips re deliveries, adding to our list of questions for the council.

Sorry.... would not touch with an enormous bargepole. Too many unknowns.

We've now 90% confirmed the lane way planning permission is not adjacent to house - a final call with the Highways official at the council on Monday will give us 100%.

And we've seen the mixed use unit plans on the council website - the retail element is far enough away from the house to be no more noisy than the existing surrounding streets.

From our perspective, a desolate carpark at night backing onto back garden causes more concern than regeneration to be honest - and there's lots to be said for close proximity to excellent transport links (which this has).

Not ruled it out yet - we'll spend the weekend pouring over the details.