Brothers fill up with 19 redundant petrol stations

Two brothers have opened their year with the purchase of 19 former petrol-station sites which they plan to redevelop.

Steve and Clive Boultbee Brooks run property company Boultbee and, following the sale of their property assets in Scandinavia last year, they are committed to spending £100m in the UK in 2011.

Steve is the risk-taker of the two; he's been round the world on a two-year expedition; learned to scuba dive on the Great Barrier Reef; trekked to the Everest base camp; climbed the Rwanzori Mountains in Uganda; and driven from the US to Russia, crossing the treacherous Bering Strait.

In 2009, the brothers bought a rare two-seater Spitfire. The 1944 Mk IX Second World War fighter was sold at Bonhams for £1.58m (£1.7m after fees).

The petrol-station deal is a joint venture with their long-time adviser, Peter Goldstein, via his Aurum Real Estate vehicle. The former Total petrol stations include sites in Chiswick and Harrow in London, as well as in Manchester, Guildford and Fleet. The sites will be developed as a mix of flats and shops. In the past month, Boultbee has also bought property assets in Edinburgh, Norwich and Oxford.