New York Loft Inspired Show Home Opens at Friar Gate Goods Yard, Derby
A two-bedroom show house has been opened to the public at Wavensmere Homes’ £80m Friar Gate Goods Yard redevelopment in Derby city centre. Inspired by New York loft living, the EPC A-rated show home celebrates the industrial heritage of the Grade II listed landmark railway depot that closed in 1967.
Accessed off Uttoxeter New Road, the redevelopment programme commenced at the 11.5-acre (4.96Ha) historic site in October 2024. Alongside the 276 new build homes under construction, the Engine House has recently been unveiled as Wavensmere’s marketing suite. Meanwhile, the vast Grade II listed Bonded Warehouse is being reanimated into over 110,000 sq ft of commercial space. The full restoration and construction programme is anticipated to complete by the end of 2028.
Wavensmere Homes has already sold 180 houses off-plan at Friar Gate Goods Yard. Prices for the next available plots start from £285,000, with completion dates falling in December 2027. The marketing suite and show home are available to view by appointment every Tuesday through to Friday.
Styled by Edward Thomas Interiors, the newly built 620 sq ft, two-storey show house seamlessly blends industrial character with contemporary living. The interior detailing incorporates black accents throughout, slatted and cork panelling and a blend of leather and linen textures. Standout features include walls wallpapered with an exposed lime-washed concrete effect, and a vintage steel basket design in the downstairs cloakroom, creating quirky and memorable spaces.
Rebecca Jones, Design Manager for Edward Thomas Interiors said: Friar Gate Goods Yard is such an inspirational place and we’ve designed this two-bedroom show house to really capture that essence. There’s a mixture of panelling styles and wallpaper to exude an architectural vibe, with curated furniture, art, layered textures and soft furnishings all selected to appeal to Derby’s aspirational young professionals.
Bespoke headboards inject personality and elegance into both bedrooms, while the made to measure banquet seating in the open-plan living area create the perfect place to entertain. We’ve then teamed the bespoke items with soft furnishings from Marks and Spencer and Home Sense. We can’t wait for people to have a look around and imagine themselves living here.
Wavensmere Homes has already invested £30m in the regeneration of Friar Gate Goods Yard, following nearly six decades of dereliction, urban decay and extensive fire damage. Every detail of the redevelopment has been carefully considered by the multi-award-winning regeneration specialist, to ensure the local landmark holds great symbolic importance in Derby’s ongoing renaissance.
The architecture for the two- and three-bedroom townhouses is bespoke. Curved and terraced street scenes honour the beauty and vista of the 19th Century Bonded Warehouse, while incorporating a range of energy saving technologies and strategies. Each EPC A-rated house benefits from an air source heat pump, alongside solar PV panels and an EV charging port.
The new homes will be complemented by the painstaking restoration of the existing buildings, which will deliver a total of 111,275 sq ft of flexible offices, health and fitness space, and a restaurant/café. Extensive new areas of open space, including pocket parks are also being created.
The elevated area adjacent to Friar Gate Bridge is becoming a new multi-purpose public realm and community space, with retention of some of the original railway arch facades. New vehicular, pedestrian and cycle access is also being created at various points around the site, from Uttoxeter New Road, Great Northern Way, and Friar Gate, with the Mick Mack cycling route also to be extended.
The site sits just outside the Friar Gate Conservation Area, which features notable Georgian townhouses with high-quality brickwork and fine architectural detailing. Friar Gate Goods Yard was intended as the main goods depot for the Great Northern Railway line, to handle coal, livestock, timber, and metals. Designed in 1870, and entering operation in 1878, the Bonded Warehouse building contained extensive warehouse space and offices. It was used as a store for the American Army in WWII to house ammunition and other supplies.
Derby’s array of city centre amenities and attractions are within a five-to-10-minute walk of the site, with Derby Train Station being 1.5 miles away. Several bus routes are located along the boundary roads to the site on Friar Gate and Uttoxeter New Road.
Interested parties for the new homes or commercial aspects of the scheme can enquire via Wavensmere Homes’website or by calling 01564 781453
