Efforts to sell

FarmerHorse

I own my late parents' small business. The land it's on now has a significant value and a commercial developer is keen to buy the site, subject to access. Highways England won't allow direct access to the site due to the increased traffic that commercial activity would bring, but suggested inviting the adjacent business to share their access. That business has rejected offers to share, even though their access would be landscaped and improved significantly and a substantial cash payment would be made to them.

Their refusal will cost a number of jobs (estimate is some 100s), plus the financial benefit to the local council of new businesses. Personal approaches to the neighbouring business's management have been fruitless, and the local council & Highways say they can't do anything. Can anyone suggest ways in which it might be worth trying again to persuade that business that an improved shared access (+ the cash payment) would be beneficial to all involved?

user1977

By making the cash payment even more substantial?

FarmerHorse

No. Not interested. I'm hoping for ideas about changing their negative views on the issue of sharing, as their concern is thta it might be disruptive to their customers. It won't be.

comeandgo

You will have to try and prove it won’t be disruptive then.    Can you or someone willing to partner with you buy the business that owns the access land?

canaldumidi

FarmerHorse said:

....I'm hoping for ideas about changing their negative views on the issue of sharing, as their concern is thta it might be disruptive to their customers. It won't be.

You mention 100s of jobs which suggests a substantial business.

* how many employees (your business/their business)?

* what % of employees (yours/theirs) drive to work Vs public transport etc?

* do employees (yours/theirs) come and go during the working day eg sales people/ delivery drivers etc?

* do customers visit the businesses (yours/theirs)? How many?

When the council consider planning applications they often require a transport survey to show how much traffic will be generated. You need to do the same so the neighbour can clearly see what volume of traffic will realistically be involved. Of course, they might still justifiably fear that even though your use of the shared drive might be minimal, if you sold up and a new business moved in, alsohaving a ROW over the drive, that new business might be anythng. With a much larger traffic volume.

user1977

What professional advice have you had to date? If you've got surveyors dealing with marketing, then have they done their best to sell the proposition to the neighborus?

jonnydeppiwish!

Why not let the interested commercial developer sort it out? They’re the ones with the interest, and more importantly, the expertise in this area.