Green light for York’s Coney Street Riverside
York-based Helmsley Group’s masterplan has been approved, and will see the creation of 250,000 sq ft of retail, leisure, commercial, and residential space along the city’s waterfront.
Situated in York’s Central Conservation Area, a riverside walkway will be built alongside new and rejuvenated historic lanes and passageways, reconnecting Coney Street and the River Ouse.
The site consists of 19-33 Coney Street, and 39 Coney Street to 2 Spurriergate. It includes four listed buildings and two buildings of merit, and is in close proximity to a number of other listed buildings and buildings of importance.
The project team for the scheme includes Helmsley Group, brown + company, O’Neill Associates, Corstorphine and Wright, Montagu Evans, Aspect4, Gillespies, Troup Bywaters & Anders, Billinghurst George & Partners, Jane Simpson Access, Knight Frank, DS Emotion, and Aberfield Communications.
The masterplan will now be formally approved, subject to the secretary of state not calling in parts of the application relating to listed buildings.
Subject to planning conditions, Helmsley aims to start on site by 2026.

The currently inaccessible waterfront will be made open to the public, with mixed use retail and commercial options. Credit: via Aberfield
A separate planning application for another, smaller area of the site is expected to be approved within weeks.
At the meeting of City of York Council’s planning committee on 24 October, members commended Helmsley’s leading approach to community engagement, said its vision would revitalise a neglected area, and described the scheme as a “fantastic use of unused space”.
Concluding the discussion, Cllr Jonny Crawshaw, chair of the planning committee, said it was positive that Helmsley planned to sensitively put listed buildings back into use.
“This scheme is long overdue and is a really positive thing for York,” he said.
Members voted both the masterplan planning application and a separate listed building application through with overwhelming majorities.
Following the meeting, Max Reeves, development director at Helmsley Group, said: “As a business based in York and with more than 40 years of experience delivering impactful development, we have always said that we are committed to this scheme for the long term and that it will bring many positive benefits to the city and wider region.
“We are pleased that these factors were taken into consideration by the planning committee alongside our positive efforts working together with City of York Council, the public and stakeholders to ensure these plans are shaped collaboratively and supported.
“This is a wonderful opportunity to sensitively and sustainably redevelop historic Coney Street into the social heart of York and reconnect it with its riverfront.
“We now look forward to moving forward with this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity in continued partnership with others to deliver this truly mixed-use, vibrant development.”