Posted on January 21, 2011 by John Cronin
Confectionery giant Nestle has won approval for plans to redevelop a large area of the former Rowntree factory in York.
The planning committee at the City of York Council last night granted unanimous approval for the large-scale, speculative Nestle South redevelopment scheme (plans). The proposed, mixed-use scheme will see houses, flats, retail units and in excess of 100,000 sq ft of office space being built at the Haxby Road, York site (pictured).
Nestle first announced the redevelopment scheme in September 2006 and said it wanted to upgrade and improve production facilities in the more modern northern part of the site, the funding for which would come from redevelopment opportunities on the older, southern part of the site. The proposed development had raised objections from neighbouring council wards such as Heworth who suggested the scheme was over-developed and unsustainable. However, York Civic Trust had broadly welcomed the scheme, considering the redevelopment “appropriate to the location”.
The office accommodation is to be located in renovated and extended factory buildings, offering flexible configurations within large floor plates. The tallest office block will be 7-storeys in height while another existing factory building will offer 5-storeys of office space. The outline plans indicate that the office buildings will incorporate various energy-saving measures and are expected to achieve a BREEAM rating of ‘Very Good’.
Michael Jones, City of York development management officer said in his report that: “the reuse and partial redevelopment of the Nestle South site represents a regeneration opportunity of strategic importance to the city”. The offices will be marketed at prospective tenants from the creative and digital media industries alongside new, local start-up businesses who require serviced office facilities.
The large-scale, multi-million pound construction project is now being put out to tender.
Posted in Yorkshire |
Tagged Planning, Renovations, Speculative Developments |
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Posted on January 20, 2011 by John Cronin
Urban Splash, the specialist urban regeneration developers, have announced that they have been granted planning permission to develop a fourth building at Royal William Yard, Plymouth.
The Manchester-based company have been given Listed building consent to convert the New Cooperage building into 20,000 sq ft of office and retail use.
This will be the fourth building to be converted at the £70m Royal William Yard site (pictured). The site is a former naval victualling yard and consists of several, large-scale buildings that are considered to be one of Britain’s most important groups of historic military buildings. Construction work on the New Cooperage building has started immediately.
Urban Splash have again partnered with Totnes based architects Gillespie Yunnie who also designed the now completed Mills Bakery building. The Mills Bakery conversion is a mixed-used scheme offering in excess of 46,000 sq ft of floor space used for both office accommodation and leisure services. Some 32,300 sq ft of office floor space is available over 3 floors, with large and flexible floor plans based around a central atrium. The current occupancy rate is running at approximately 90% with tenants including Hoare Lea, the Ministry of Defence and the University of Plymouth. Quoted rental prices are £10 / sq ft with an additional service charge.
Nathan Cornish, director at Urban Splash commented upon the latest office conversion: “To get planning consent and start on site with a speculative office scheme at New Cooperage in the current climate shows our confidence both in the Plymouth market and in our offer at Royal William Yard.”
Posted in Devon |
Tagged Listed Buildings, Renovations, Rental Prices, Speculative Developments |
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Posted on January 18, 2011 by John Cronin
A new, modern office development in Woking, Surrey has been approved by the local planning authority.
Architects Holder Mathias have been granted approval (subject to a section 106 agreement being agreed) for plans for a 27,000 sq ft office development that will see a two-section, modern office building being constructed on a site at 121 Chertsey Road in the town. According to the planning documentation, the investment company behind the scheme is Canada Life.
The site, upon which an existing, vacant building currently stands, has been subject to four previous planning applications for office developments. The last application for a new office scheme was rejected upon appeal in March, 2009. The existing building is to be demolished and the new building will offer in excess of 3 times the floor space of the existing one.
The “uncompromisingly modern” building will feature a 6-storey main block with an additional 3-storey, curved section. The new offices are being constructed near residential housing and existing office blocks that were constructed in the 1970’s and 1980’s and the architects felt that a single block design was not appropriate. The speculative development is to be marketed as being suitable for either headquarters style premises or as multiple tenant occupancy.
Indicative rental prices for this new, Grade A development are not yet available. Other serviced offices in Chertsey Road are marketed at rental prices in the region £15 / sq ft – £17.50 / sq ft.
Posted in Surrey |
Tagged Demolitions, Planning, Rental Prices, Speculative Developments |
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Posted on January 17, 2011 by John Cronin
Redevelopment plans for a 1980’s office block in Leeds have been approved despite one councillor claiming the building would resemble a ‘spaceship’.
Property developers Ripley Capital, investors Formal Investments and their architects think architecture and design have been granted planning permission for the redevelopment of the existing office building at 21 Queen Street, Leeds (pictured).
Whilst Leeds planning officers reported that the redesign of the offices was innovative, other council members disagreed. Councillor Elizabeth Nash said of the additional 2-storey extension “the thing on the top looks like a spaceship has landed”. Her colleague councillor Graham Latty said “We have some interesting things in this part of the world but this takes the biscuit.” The plans were approved at the last planning committee meeting.
The existing building, renamed from Prince William House to 21 Queens Street last September, was constructed in 1983 and offers approximately 25,000 sq ft of office space. The building, which is currently vacant, has been previously marketed with a rental price of £10 / sq ft. The premises are located in the business district of Leeds city centre, within 5 minutes walk of Leeds City Railway Station.
With the addition of two new floors, the building will offer in excess of 37,000 sq ft of floor space. The redevelopment is speculative and the developers aim to market the building as Grade A specification, headquarters style office accommodation. A BREEAM rating of at least “Very Good’ is expected. The building was last occupied by law firm Irwin Mitchell up until 2008.
Construction work is expected to commence in April with a completion target of early, 2012.
Posted in West Yorkshire |
Tagged Planning, Renovations, Speculative Developments |
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Posted on January 14, 2011 by John Cronin
A large scale, mixed-use development in Birmingham has been granted planning permission for additional office floor space.
The speculative Arena Central scheme (pictured) in Birmingham city centre has been granted planning permission for an additional 300,000 sq ft of office floor space, taking the maximum allowable space up to 800,000 sq ft.
It is hoped that £400m project will now gather momentum and generate additional pre-let enquiries from prospective tenants requiring larger floor plates. The initial demolition phase at the 7.6acre site has now been completed and a residential tower has been constructed in an initial phase. Despite the increase in permissible office space, the complete development is still restricted to a total footage of 2.3m sq ft and all buildings must meet a BREEAM rating of ‘Excellent’. Arena Central is part of the masterplan for Birmingham city centre known as the Big City Plan.
Grade A office accommodation is proposed for Arena Central and is to be constructed around a new, landscaped public square. Two or more new office buildings will complement the adjacent 1970’s, 27-storey Alpha Tower that offers 200,000 sq ft of office floor space. Office suites within Alpha Tower start at 1,500 sq ft and maximum floor plates are in excess of 7,000 sq ft. The building has recently undergone a £3.3m programme of internal and external improvement works. Average rental prices are quoted at £15 / sq ft on new, flexible term leases.
Martin Guest, CBRE Birmingham, joint letting agent for Arena Central, said: “Arena Central is already extremely well placed to capture any bespoke pre-let enquiries. The increased office capacity to 800,000 sq ft will further enhance its appeal, making it the city centre’s largest consented, deliverable, office scheme.”
Joint developers for the scheme are Miller Developments and Bridgehouse Capital.
Posted in West Midlands |
Tagged Arena Central, Renovations, Rental Prices, Speculative Developments |
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Posted on January 13, 2011 by John Cronin
A floating, mixed use development in Glasgow is a step nearer reality after a preferred bidder has been selected for the proposed scheme.
Wilmslow, Cheshire based Floating Concepts is a specialist property development company focusing on water based rather than land based developments. It has been selected by Scottish Enterprise as the preferred bidder for the proposed £30m floating development at the Canting Basin, on the south bank of the River Clyde in Glasgow (pictured). The mixed-use scheme will incorporate residential accommodation, leisure and retail facilities and a range of offices. A u-shaped floating road would be built at Canting Basin, which is part of Prince’s Dock at the back of the Glasgow Science Centre.
The ambitious project, set in 5 hectares of water, would include the construction of offices amounting to 24,000 sq ft of floor space. To be located in front of the existing Hub office development, the proposed office units would be relatively small, ranging in size from floor plates of 600 sq ft to 800 sq ft. Larger structures ranging in size from 10,000 – 12,000 sq ft would be split into units offering floor plates of 1,000 – 3,500 sq ft. The Hub is a new-build scheme at Pacific Quay offering flexible office suites ranging in size from 130 – 16,000 sq ft. The serviced offices are popular with design and digital media industry and the offices are currently running at a 50% occupancy rate.
The speculative, floating development for the Canting Basin site has yet to be granted outline planning permission and construction will only commence once private funding is made available. Construction work could start in early summer 2012 and 3 phase development is expected to take 3 years. Architects for the scheme are Glasgow-based ZM Architecture and water development specialists Baca of London.
Posted in Glasgow |
Tagged Canting Basin, Serviced Offices, Speculative Developments |
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Posted on January 12, 2011 by John Cronin
Plans for a multi-million pound refurbishment in Manchester to create offices within a listed building have been submitted and are now awaiting approval.
Owners of the Grade II Listed Sevendale House in Dale Street (pictured – source), Philip J Davies Holdings, have submitted plans to convert the significant building into Grade A offices.
Sevendale House is a flagship building located in the resurgent Northern Quarter of Manchester city centre, an area that is popular with companies in the design and new media industries. The conversion programme, if approved, will be one of the largest office conversion projects seen in Manchester for several years.
The 6-storey building will offer in excess of 61,000 sq ft of floor space with flexible floor plates of approximately 14,000 sq ft. Currently 4 of the 5 upper storeys are empty and the basement and ground floors are currently occupied by retail and leisure operators. The developers are proposing a sympathetic restoration of the building, including a re-introduction of an original lightwell that will provide the office space with natural daylight. Expected rental prices for the speculative redevelopment are not yet available.
The developers have been waiting for several long-term leases to expire before embarking on their £6m refurbishment plans. Mark Davies, director of Philip J Davies said: “This is our first opportunity in 25 years to carry out the long-awaited renaissance of this significant building, which will also enhance the attractions of the Northern Quarter to office users requiring good quality space in a great location, whether it is creative industries that gravitate to this area or professional service companies.”
Architects for the redevelopment are Stephenson Bell. A decision from the planning committee is expected in March and the project has a target completion date of spring 2012.
Posted in Manchester |
Tagged Listed Buildings, Renovations, Speculative Developments |
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Posted on January 11, 2011 by John Cronin
A large-scale development in Thames Valley has been acquired by a US private equity investor.
US investors Benson Elliot Capital Management and UK property developers Stanhope plc have acquired a majority interest in the Station Hill redevelopment in Reading, Berkshire. The redevelopment of the site next to Reading station was previously controlled by John Madejski, the property and publishing entrepreneur, via his Sackville Properties company. It is believed that the scheme had breached banking covenants and has been sold for less than the outstanding debt value.
Station Hill (pictured) is one of the largest commercial developments in the UK with an expected development cost in excess of £400m. The 1.72m sq ft, mixed-use speculative development will include over 860,000 sq ft of office floor space along with retail units, residential accommodation and leisure areas.
Construction for the 5.1acre site has been timetabled to commence in 2011 with a target, first phase completion date of 2014.
The development, designed by architects Scott BrownRigg and Chapman Taylor, will include 3 multi-storey office buildings, the tallest standing at 26 floors. The smallest office block will offer approximately 200,000 sq ft of floor space and the largest offering 320,000 sq ft. Floor plates will range in size from 8,000 sq ft up to 14,000 sq ft. The building design is expected to result in a BREEAM rating of ‘Excellent’. The design of the scheme has not been without criticism, with CABE expressing concerns over the height of the tall office towers.
Full planning documentation is available on the Reading Borough Council website.
Posted in Berkshire |
Tagged Speculative Developments, Transactions |
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Posted on January 10, 2011 by John Cronin
One of the largest business parks in the UK is set to be sold for nearly £500m to a private equity group.
Blackstone, the private equity investors are aiming to sign off a deal worth £480m to purchase the 1.8m sq ft Chiswick Park office campus. Chiswick Park is currently owned by several investors of a trust that holds the property and it is believed that more than 50% of the trusts investors are now ready to sell. Although the trust expired in December 2009, a sale was not actively sought during 2010 due to the difficult commercial property market.
Chiswick Park (pictured) is located on a former 33acre, bus depot site on the border of west London suburbs Chiswick and Acton. The business park, constructed by Stanhope plc, will consist of 12 office buildings ranging in size from 81,000 sq ft up to 332,000 sq ft. Construction began in 1999 and 3 office blocks are still be constructed.
Occupancy rates are high and with recent lettings including 140,000 sq ft to QVC and 134,000 sq ft to Tullow Oil, only 74,000 sq ft of vacant floor space is available. The park also includes 82,000 sq ft of serviced office space and a range of cafes, a fitness centre and events/exhibitions space.
Stanhope have commenced construction on a new office and studios for TV shopping company QVC at building 8, with completion to shell and core in April. QVC signed a pre-let agreement in August, 2010. Tullow Oil signed a 15 year lease for floor space in building 9. Rental prices have not been disclosed.
Architects for the speculative development are Rogers Stirk Harbour & Partners who have designed large floor plate buildings that allow for maximum use of natural daylight. The scheme has won several national awards for both the quality and design of the offices and also for the extensive landscaping of the office campus. The buildings have BREEAM ratings of ‘Excellent’.
Marketing agents for the development include Savills and Jones Lang LaSalle
Posted in London |
Tagged Business Parks, Serviced Offices, Speculative Developments, Transactions |
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Posted on January 7, 2011 by John Cronin
A second tenant has agreed to lease floor space in the largest office building in Reading.
It has been announced that software company Pegasystems has signed a 10 year lease for 22,590 sq ft of floor space on the third floor of One Reading Central, the largest office building in Reading. The company has agreed to pay a rent of £30/ sq ft and will occupy the offices from April. The other tenant occupying the building is Yell, the telephone directories business who entered into a pre-let agreement and subsequently signed a 20 year lease.
One Reading Central (pictured) is a speculative development that was completed in February, 2010. The 10 storey building offers a total of 218,800 sq ft of floor space with typical floor plates of approximately 22,500 sq ft. Floors 4 – 10 are let to Yell who relocated to the building from 4 smaller offices in October, 2010.
Vacant floor space totalling 41,560 sq ft remains available on the first and second floors of the building. The offices are Grade A rated and the building has a BREEAM rating of ‘Excellent’.
Dan Ryan, VP Real Estate and Facilities at Pegasystems, commented: “We considered a number of options in the Thames Valley market and One Reading Central offered us good design flexibility due to its large floor plates.”
One Reading Central is a £90m joint venture between Kier Property and Invista Real Estate and is the first of a proposed development of 3 office buildings that will offer in excess of 670,000 sq ft of floor space.
Marketing agents for the development include DTZ and Hanover Green.
Posted in Berkshire |
Tagged Rental Prices, Speculative Developments |
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