Eddington's 2019 in review

As Eddington enters its third year, the community continues to grow and develop.

2020 will see Dulcedo Patisserie coming to Market Square, along with events and pop-up retailers throughout the year. Hill Residential will complete more market homes for sale, with that part of the Eddington community expected to grow in 2020. The University is continuing with its early plans for Phase 2 of the North West Cambridge Development, which will deliver the infrastructure to support and enhance the growing residential community.

Project Director Heather Topel said: “The past year has seen the Eddington community thrive and flourish, with more facilities and events to help growth. Eddington has transformed from a construction development to an established part of Cambridge, with its own character and sense of place. We look forward to seeing how Eddington will evolve in 2020.”

2019 saw another series of landmark achievements Cambridge’s newest neighbourhood.

Highlights include:

The population of Eddington has grown by 60%, from 1,100 residents in January to over 1,750 today.
The launch of the Eddington sporting facilities, including the football pitch, cricket pitch and pavilions, which are available for hire for both community and commercial rates.
Eddington was selected to trial Royal Mail’s sustainable e-Trikes, continuing its pioneering sustainability agenda.
The year saw Eddington host several large-scale community events, including the Cricket World Cup tour, Eddington Discovery Day and Open Eddington 2019.
In September, works began on the Eddington Hotel, which is expected to open in 2021. The Hyatt hotel will have 150 rooms, a restaurant, a seasonal roof terrace, a coffee servery and co-working space. The Locke aparthotel will have 180 rooms as well as a café bar, retail space and meeting rooms.
The Eddington Nursery officially opened in November, with over 100 children attending the nursery.

During 2019, feedback from Eddington residents was overwhelmingly positive, with one resident saying: “What we most like about Eddington is that it is a wonderful place to live in and yet the rent prices are affordable. Recently I was lucky to have been awarded a 3-year fellowship to continue doing research in the University. But if not for Eddington I would probably have declined the award, as we would not have been able to afford living in Cambridge comfortably.”

Another said: “I like the supermarket nearby. I like that money is put into community events. Storey’s Field is beautiful and a great resource. I like the architecture. I like the quality of the flats. I like that we can report faults which are fixed as quickly as possible. I like the landscaped gardens.”

Eddington’s first phase comprises 700 homes for key University staff, a post-graduate student complex for 325 students, and facilities to support the local community, including the community centre, primary school, supermarket, shop, parklands, play areas and sports fields, as well as infrastructure to support connectivity for the development.