Fruit Market residential development completes as buyers snap up final homes

CHEERS!: From left, Beal Homes Chief Executive Richard Beal, homebuyers Deborah Morgan and Amby Ezem, and Wykeland Group Managing Director Dominic Gibbons

By Rick Lyon

The residential development in the heart of Hull’s regenerated Fruit Market is now complete, marking a major new milestone in the creation of the urban community.

Buyers have snapped up properties in the final phase of the development, marking the end of a four-year period during which it has taken shape close to the city’s waterfront.

The £24m development is now home to a community of around 300 residents, ranging from young couples and professionals, to families and retired people.

The development features 109 mews-style homes arranged around four private courtyards and is a key element of the £80m regeneration of the Fruit Market area driven forward by Wykeland Beal, a joint venture company formed by commercial developer Wykeland Group and housebuilder Beal Homes, working in partnership with Hull City Council.

In recent years Wykeland Beal has transformed a near-derelict area – once home to Hull’s wholesale fruit and veg trade – into a vibrant commercial, creative, cultural and residential community.

Richard Beal, Chief Executive of East Yorkshire-based Beal Homes, said: “The Fruit Market residential development has been a huge success and proven tremendously popular.

COMPLETE: The £24m Fruit Market residential development in Hull

“From the outset we were committed to delivering much more than just a residential development. We saw this as a unique opportunity to create a new place to live unlike anything else in Hull or the surrounding region.

“Our ambition was to create a new neighbourhood offering the very best of urban design, in keeping with the area’s rich history and heritage, and attractive to a broad range of residents, all enjoying the vibrant lifestyle the Fruit Market offers, with so much to do and enjoy on their doorstep.

“We believe we have achieved that in the Fruit Market by creating a community where people love to live and which sets a new benchmark for city living in Hull.”

Dominic Gibbons, Managing Director of Hull-based Wykeland Group, said: “There have been so many high points over the course of the past few years as we have delivered so much positive change in the Fruit Market. The completion of the residential development is certainly one of those.

“Our vision for the Fruit Market is to create a unique and vibrant quarter where people live, work and play, so the residential element is a key part of the overall regeneration picture.

“Having hundreds of people living in the Fruit Market adds to the very strong sense of community and contributes to the vitality of the area. It also means the shops, restaurants, cafés, bars and galleries in the Fruit Market have a community of customers on tap.”

‘HIGH POINT’: Richard Beal, left, and Dominic Gibbons in front of townhouses forming part of the Fruit Market residential development

Among the final buyers in the Fruit Market is Amby Ezem, 28, who moved into her two-bedroom apartment in the final phase of the development in September last year.

Now, with support from her family, she has invested in a three-bedroom townhouse, which she has rented out to tenants through Beal’s sister property management company Yorkshire and Lincolnshire Developments (YLD).

Amby, a pharmacist, said: “I heard about this development through a friend who lives in the Fruit Market and the location is just perfect. There is so much to do here.

“The Fruit Market has everything I need and I love urban living. It’s a friendly community and I look forward to coming home from work to be here.”

Librarian Deborah Morgan and her husband, Professor Trevor Burnard, relocated from Melbourne, Australia, and bought a two-storey home with a loft room in November 2020. Their love for the area cemented Deborah’s recent decision to buy a two-bedroom apartment for her to rent out.

Deborah, 62, said: “We love the vibe in the Fruit Market and that it is so close to the city centre and with bars, restaurants and everything we need close to hand.

“This is an area of Hull that will continue to go from strength to strength and we’re very settled and comfortable here. We’ve lived in many different places and this is one of best.”