David Parkin finds memories flowing on the river
WHAT do you call 16,000 property professionals when they converge on a city for a major conference?
Well, in my experience, anything you like, because they are too busy striding boldly through the city tugging wheelie cases and bellowing into mobile phones or talking loudly to each other about what deals they are about to conclude.
The UK Real Estate Investment & Infrastructure Forum, which is better known as UKREiiF, was held in Leeds over three days this week.
The main exhibition and conference venue is at New Dock Hall at the Royal Armouries, but fringe events took place all over the city and further afield.
You didn’t have to walk far in the city centre to bump into property bods wearing white shirts, chinos and trainers with either navy blazers or gilets.
It is the UK's biggest real estate exhibition which they used to call ‘MIPIM without the sun’ but given that it chucked it down at the European property conference in Cannes this year and the sun shonw warmly in Leeds, perhaps that perception has changed a bit.
To see restaurants, bars and cafes buzzing with people is not only good for the economy of a city but UKREiiF is also a great showcase for Leeds.
I met up with a friend who is a top property lawyer in London who was visiting the conference for the first time.
He and his colleagues had to stay in a hotel in York because of the lack of accommodation in Leeds, but he said the short 20-minute train journey was no problem and they had had a really productive few days meeting top contacts from the UK real estate industry.
I visited Bradford’s showcase at UKREiiF at the Mumtaz restaurant at Leeds Dock yesterday and the place was buzzing with energy on the day the city, this year’s UK City of Culture, unveiled plans for the Southern Gateway which will be one of the biggest regeneration sites in the UK.
The inner-city Southern Gateway site, with borders along Manchester Road and Leeds Road, is intended to offer office, commercial and residential developments alongside public realm and green spaces and major transport upgrades including tram links and a new Bradford railway station.
It was nice to bump into some familiar faces including Yaseen Mohammed who I worked with at the MIPIM property conference a few years ago and Ingunn Vallumroed who I worked with when I hosted a series of overseas trade events for the Department of International Trade.
I met up with the team from children’s hospice Martin House and was able to introduce them to other guests at the Bradford showcase including Mark Casci from West & North Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce and Stuart Clarke MBE, founder of Leeds Digital Festival.
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I’VE seen Stuart Clarke three times this week.
Firstly at our monthly film club on Monday and then again on Tuesday at the BHP Spring Fuddle.
If you don’t know what a fuddle is, then neither did I.
I know that accountancy firm BHP has been holding a lunch at Sous le Nez every Christmas for the last few years and now has launched a spring event which saw members of the business community invited to the Square & Compass pub in North Rigton between Leeds and Harrogate for a walk through the surrounding countryside followed by a barbecue and drinks.
Apparently ‘fuddle’ is a Yorkshire term relating to a communal buffet typically hosted within the workplace.
Hamish Morrison and Dan Sommerville and their colleagues are warm hosts and led about 50 of us on a six mile hike in blazing sunshine that took in Almscliffe Crag.
When I arrived at the event I introduced myself to a member of the BHP team who said to me: “I know who you are: you’re infamous.”
I was just about to display false modesty and say I wasn’t, when I realised she’d said infamous, not famous.
It made me think that actually I’d much prefer to be infamous than famous.
Hamish said he’d be delighted for me to feature the event in my blog as long as I didn’t mention if he took us on the wrong walking route.
And I wouldn’t have mentioned it, but I was trailing at the rear of the group chatting to an interesting accountant (it’s such a novelty) when a farmer appeared from a nearby building and shouted at us that we were not following the footpath.
I feigned being the non-Yorkshire definition of the word ‘fuddle’, which according to the dictionary, is “a state of confusion or intoxication”.
I think he took pity on us and pointed out the correct footpath.
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I DID something I’ve never done before yesterday.
No, not a hard day’s graft.
I’m still building up to that.
I took the Leeds Dock Water Taxi for the first time.
Heading to a meeting at UKREiiF, I came out of Leeds station and saw one of the two little yellow boats that ferry visitors from the city centre to the Royal Armouries.
I hopped aboard the vessel, piloted by a welcoming and friendly captain and with half a dozen passengers aboard we set off along the River Aire.
The short journey, which you could walk in about 15 minutes, gives a whole new perspective of the city and takes in Asda’s headquarters, the historic Leeds Bridge and brought back memories of much-missed riverside restaurants, Leodis, run by Phil Richardson and Pool Court and Brasserie Forty4 operated by Steve Ridealgh.
It also had me reminiscing about the first ever place I lived when I moved to Leeds in 2000.
At the time the concept of ‘city living’ was in its infancy but I rented an apartment in a development alongside the River Aire allowing me to walk to work every morning.
You can tell how long ago it was, I had to walk to a petrol station to buy a pint of milk.
The apartment was owned by a Belgian gynaecologist.
No I’m not making that up.
And it was decorated exactly as you might expect a Belgian gynaecologist to decorate it.
Bright green furry carpet in the bathroom and lots of lace streamers suspended from the ceiling in the spare bedroom.
You would be right to surmise that I didn’t do a great deal of entertaining at home during the 18 months I was living there.
I have to admit that this led to me not having much success with the ladies during my single years.
Well, that’s my excuse and I’m sticking to it.
Have a great weekend.