James, age 33

"My criteria for house hunting was mainly for future investment. Leeds is a fantastic city that is constantly developing and seemed like a great choice. I work in Birstall just 5 miles from the city centre and although I wanted an investment I didn’t want to battle the rush hour traffic and the gridlock of city centres.

In December 2004 I discovered Holbeck Urban Village, it is a great location and is easy to avoid the rush hour traffic in central area and all the busy routes. Although I was looking for investment I actually found much more in Holbeck. The plans for the large scale development of the area include a sensitivity to the environment and rather than just building apartments and offices they aim to build a community which is a perfect setting to live in.

The area is much quieter than in the city centre and thought has been given to the simple things like where do I park my car. It can be a nightmare in some city centres but parking is easy here as much of the development is geared around walking and cycling and the developers have thought about the practicalities of living.

Round Foundry leisure facilities are growing , we started with David Street Café and Pickled Pepper and last year the Cross Keys opened and in December The Foundry restaurant. We have a newsagents and some of the other schemes include things like corner shops, dentists, crèches and the like. It is already a pleasant community which I hope will grow and flourish and become even more a part of our daily lives

Although at the moment opportunities are limited for some audiences e.g., families I think in the future predominantly residential developments such as Green Bank that offer three bedroom living space will make the urban village accessible for all audiences. I would recommend the area particularly for young professionals such as myself who are looking for somewhere reasonably close to work that is well thought out and offers amenities close by."