Commercial Property News

Morley, advised by Savills, has successfully concluded the assignment of the multiplex cinema space at Limelight, High Street West, Sunderland to Empire Cinemas.

The 12-screen cinema is part of a 81,000 sq ft city centre leisure scheme developed in September 2004. Empire Cinemas has taken a 23-year lease at the property, at a rent of £468,000 pa. Previous tenant Cine UK was forced by the OFT to dispose of this lease upon merging with UGC, allowing Empire Cinemas to rebrand and take over an already fully functional site.

Other tenants at the centre include Gala Casino, Frankie & Benny's and Nandos. Three vacant restaurant units remain at the scheme, ranging between 3,000 and 7,280 sq ft (279 and 676 sq m).

Justin Ribbons, chief executive officer of Empire Cinemas comments: "Empire Cinemas is delighted to have been able to secure this opportunity at the new Limelight development in the heart of Sunderland. The quality of the whole development mirrors our own commitment to provide an unrivalled cinema experience to our customers. With wall to wall screens, luxury seating, state of the art technology, mezzanine café bar and premier boxes the new Empire Cinema certainly delivers on that commitment. We believe our customers will enjoy not only the new cinema but also the range of leisure experiences on offer at Limelight."

Empire Cinemas was unrepresented.

X-Leisure has announced the letting of 30,000 sq ft at Edinburgh's Fountain Park leisure destination to Stanley Casinos on a 25 year FRI lease. Stanley expects to open the £6.5m Fountain Park Casino during the first half of 2007.

This strategic letting by agents Montagu Evans replaces the unit formerly occupied by the Eros/Arena nightclubs at basement level.

Stanley secured its Gaming Licence at a Licensing Committee Hearing of Edinburgh City Council held at the end of June and will effectively transfer the existing licence from its smaller Berkeley Casino venue in Rutland Place to Fountain Park. This allows Stanley significant expansion of its casino operations in Edinburgh, whilst maintaining its complement of three venues in the city.

PY Gerbeau, CEO of X-Leisure comments: "This is an exciting new letting for Fountain Park and another success in our strategy to add vibrancy and diversity to our leisure offer. Investment of this magnitude by Stanley Casinos is a further demonstration of market confidence in Edinburgh and in Fountain Park as the city's leading leisure destination, coming hard on the heels of the brand new 25,000 sq ft Electronic Mecca Bingo in March. We are seeing more and more customers of all ages visiting Fountain Park and we are well positioned to provide leisure and entertainment facilities for many more, when the Fountainbridge residential redevelopments come online."

Fountain Park is strategically located between Dundee Street and West Approach Road, adjacent to Edinburgh's Exchange District. It is a 250,000 sq ft leisure destination comprising a 13-screen Cineworld cinema, an 18-lane Megabowl, 40,000 sq ft Virgin Active health and fitness club, a 25,000 sq ft Electronic Mecca Bingo and various bars & restaurants. Secure on-site car parking is provided for up to 825 cars.

Kirsty Martin has joined specialist commercial property law firm Bell & Scott as a Senior Solicitor in its successful Property Dispute Resolution Team.

Kirsty joins Bell & Scott from Eversheds LLP in Birmingham where she specialised in Real Estate Litigation. Kirsty advises on all landlord and tenant issues, including debt recovery, lease termination, rent review and dilapidations. She also advises developers on pre and post development issues as well as dealing with general property queries.

Sheila Webster, Partner and head of Bell & Scott's Property Dispute Resolution Team, commented: "Our Property Dispute Resolution Team understands the property industry inside out and has extensive experience in all nature of property related disputes. Kirsty is a very welcome addition to the team."

Boodle Hatfield has advised two Albermarle vehicles on the purchase of a shopping centre in Egham. Forsters acted for the sellers, Hutley (Egham) Ltd.

Albermarle has purchased The Precinct in Egham, Surrey, for £13m and, in a separate transaction, provided forward funding of £7m for an office building in Exeter. Boodle Hatfield commercial property partner, Helen Streeton acted for Albermarle on both transactions; Forsters commercial property partner, Tony Patterson, assisted by Sue Boyall acted for Hutley.

Debt finance for both transactions was provided by the Royal Bank of Scotland who was advised by Dundas & Wilson.

BDP has announced the signing of the Agreement to Lease to take a new building for the company's Manchester headquarters at Piccadilly Basin. LSH was involved in developing, selecting and negotiating on behalf of BDP, GVA Grimley, Donaldsons and Hill Woolhouse acted on behalf of the developer, Town Centre Securities plc.

BDP selected Piccadilly Basin as the ideal Manchester site and Town Centre Securities as its preferred developer to develop its new northern headquarters on Ducie Street after an extensive search. Planning permission has been obtained for the new building, extending to 31,000 sq. ft., designed by BDP, which will accommodate its 275 strong Manchester team. The building is scheduled for completion in early 2008. BDP is to take a 20 year lease at a rental level of £19.75 per sq. ft. Kier Northern has been appointed as the contractor.

The six storey building is to be located on a very tight site on the southern edge of the Piccadilly Canal Basin with eye catching glazed elevations cantilevered over the Rochdale and Ashton canals. It will provide highly energy efficient and flexible design studio space with dramatic views over the canal basin.

Stephen Redfern, Business Director at BDP's Manchester office, says: "BDP is delighted that construction work has now commenced on our new offices at Piccadilly Basin and that our relocation will assist in the regeneration of the area. The integrated design reflects BDP's commitment to sustainability and is intended to achieve an Excellent BREEAM rating. The new design studios will provide a flexible working environment, responsive to change and showcase BDP's design vision".

Richard Lewis, Development Director, Town Centre Securities, says: "We are delighted to have attracted BDP to our major regeneration scheme in Manchester and that they shared our vision for producing quality sustainable buildings on this very important site."

Peter Skelton, head of Lambert Smith Hampton's Manchester office, comments: "This letting is the catalyst not only for Piccadilly Basin's recognition as a major office location but also for the regeneration of the whole of the wider Piccadilly area, which is seeing significant development activity in both the commercial and residential sectors."

International property consultancy Knight Frank, has recently completed two new industrial property deals in Dyce and Bridge of Don, Aberdeen.

Acting on behalf of Quoin Property Company, Knight Frank has successfully let Unit C1 of the Lombard Centre in Kirkhill Industrial Estate, Dyce to Volenwell Ltd. Knight Frank negotiated the five year lease, on new FRI terms, with a break option after three years. Volenwell has taken the industrial space extending to 2,203, for £15,000 per annum.

The Lombard Centre comprises 10 units arranged within three detached blocks, which are all constructed around a common courtyard providing car parking and loading facilities. The Lombard Centre is located approximately seven miles north west of Aberdeen City Centre, lying in close proximity to Aberdeen Airport.

Unit 23 of Denmore Industrial Estate, Bridge of Don has been let to Salamis on a short term lease from Seatronics Ltd. Seatronics originally occupied Unit 23 Denmore Industrial Estate and Unit 4 Denmore Road Industrial Estate. When the option arose to take on the next door unit at Denmore Road Industrial Estate, Seatronics moved from Unit 23 to expand into the additional space.

Knight Frank acted on behalf of Seatronics Ltd to market the recently vacated space at Unit 23 Denmore Industrial Estate and negotiated the new lease of Unit 3 Denmore Road Industrial Estate.

Salamis secured the sub-let of Seatronics' unexpired lease, which is held on full repairing and insuring terms until June 2007. It took a lease on the 4,912 sq ft warehouse unit and office accommodation for one year, commencing from June 2006, at £25,000 per annum.

Denmore Industrial Estate is located approximately two miles to the north of Aberdeen city centre. The property consists of a mid-terraced steel portal frame warehouse unit. Occupiers in close proximity include Phoenix Beattie, Genus Express, Weatherseal and Eurocell Building Plastics.

Lynn Dawson, Knight Frank, said: "The industrial property market in Aberdeen is very strong and there is a high demand for good quality stock which is driving rents. Dyce and Bridge of Don are popular areas for industrial space so it is not surprising that units at the Lombard Centre and Denmore Industrial Estate were let very quickly. With the market set to grow I predict that we may see an increasing pressure for new land to be zoned for industrial development in these areas."

Kingfisher and The British Land Co have agreed a deal on seven B&Q; Warehouse large format stores. Kingfisher plc has sold a subsidiary company, which owns the seven stores, to The British Land Co for a total cash payment of £198m.

The stores, all freehold, are in prime edge of town locations in Ashford, Bury, Exeter, Glasgow, Grimsby, Lincoln and North Shields. The stores are approximately 100,000 sq ft each and, in total, extend to nearly 700,000 sq ft. The portfolio represents approximately 7 per cent of Kingfisher's total freehold and long leasehold assets.

The stores are let at current market rental levels to B&Q; (Kingfisher's main UK subsidiary) on 20-year leases with the tenant having an option to break after 15 years.

The leases have been structured to provide significant operational flexibility through assignment, under-letting and alterations. The rent is payable monthly in advance and will be uplifted annually in line with the change in the Retail Prices Index, subject to a cap. This reflects B&Q;'s desire to align property occupation costs more closely with the operating business environment. It will limit B&Q;'s rental increases for the stores and protects the business from any increases above the current rate of inflation. It also provides stability and certainty of cashflow for B&Q.;

Terry Hartwell, Group Property Director of Kingfisher, said: "Through this transaction, Kingfisher is taking advantage of the current buoyancy in the direct property investment market in the UK to finance its operational business at attractive rates going forward. The proceeds of the transaction will be used to repay existing debt and to invest in Kingfisher's worldwide store opening programme, including further freehold acquisitions."

Bob Bowden, Property Investment Director, British Land, said: "This purchase lies within our core out of town retail expertise and adds to our portfolio of index linked leases in which we see value."

Wakefield Metropolitan District Council gave full planning permission to proposals for the redevelopment of Pinderfields General Hospital and Pontefract General Infirmary on 6 July 2006.

Mid-Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust selected Consort Healthcare as their preferred bidder in November 2004, to replace the two hospitals under a single £300m PFI project. The new hospitals are set to deliver a step-change in patient-environment driven design.

Building Design Partnership is the lead architect, interior designer and landscape architect working in conjunction with Avanti Architects for the Balfour Beatty and Haden Young construction joint venture company.

BDP is responsible for the design of the new 85,000m2 acute hospital on the Pinderfields site on the edge of Wakefield, while Avanti Architects has designed the 18,000 m2 diagnostic and treatment centre at Pontefract.

Tim Wilkins, BDP Project Director, thanked Wakefield Council for supporting the Trust's vision of revitalising the two hospitals and said that "achieving this milestone is great news for BDP and the Consort/Balfour Beatty team, but most importantly for the Trust, its staff and patients who will benefit from enhanced healthcare services in modern facilities designed around their needs."

At Pinderfields the new build acute hospital will comprise an in-patient hotel, women's and children's centres, a rehabilitation institute, an acute services building and a diagnostic and treatment centre. Pontefract will provide, A&E;, inpatient rehabilitation and maternity services along with an outpatient based diagnostic and treatment centre.

It is expected that the new Pontefract Hospital will open in 2008/9 and that the new Pinderfields Hospital will open in 2010/11.

Other members of the design team include clinical strategists Rawlinson Kelly Whittlestone, civil & structural engineers White Young Green, services engineers Buro Happold and fire engineers Arup.

GVA Grimley has strengthened its planning team in Scotland with the announcement of a number of new appointments and promotions within its Planning, Development and Regeneration (PDR) team.

This announcement by GVA Grimley, which already has one of the leading planning departments in Scotland, signals the company's commitment to planning consultancy at a time when significant changes in the industry are expected.

Within the PDR team, Paul Rounce has been promoted to associate, Ian Gallacher and Rob Newton are now principal planners and Chris Gardner has been elevated to senior planner.

Two graduate planners, Grant Young and Nikola Miller, have also joined the team, which now has 19 staff operating across the Glasgow and Edinburgh offices.

Commenting on the announcement, Gary Mappin, PDR partner at GVA Grimley said: "There has been a profound shift in the market for developers and other property interests during the last few years. In particular, the rapid changes in planning policy and legislation and the growth in environmentally sustainable projects have led to greater demand for our planning, development and regeneration services in recent months.

"Now, with a new planning bill progressing through the Parliament and the impact that this will have on investors and developers, planning is set to become even more of a hot topic in the industry, so we have strengthened our team to ensure that we have the required resources to satisfy client demand."

Site 2 at Stadium Trading Park on the Longman Industrial Estate of Inverness is now fully occupied after property specialist Ryden sealed a hat trick of deals for Upland Developments within weeks of the scheme's completion.

Opening its first branch in Inverness, Plumbing Trade Supplies (part of the BSS group) has taken the 6,000 sq ft Unit 1. Norscott Vending Services, relocating from the city's Lotland Street, has occupied the 3,000sq ft Unit 2 and the other 3,000 sq ft Unit 3 is let to expanding business, the Fish Vet Group. The tenants have signed new rental agreements at up to £6.50 per sq.ft on 15-year FRI leases.


The development is a 12,000 sq ft terrace and the new tenants join existing occupiers Hewden Plant Hire and Riverside Kitchens on Stadium Trading Park. Upland has also completed a deal securing an another trade counter operator for their remaining 2 acres of land on Stadium Park.

Andrew Wilson, Associate at Ryden said: "These deals underline the commercial strength of the Longman Estate and demonstrate the establishment of Stadium Trading Park as a prime position"

One of the UK's top independent operators within the freight and distribution services sector is opening a new base in the East Midlands.

W T Shipping Ltd, part of the WT Group of companies, which provides specialist services to meet the requirements of major retailers and their suppliers in the Far East and European markets, has acquired a 74,000 ft² warehouse on the Hucknall Industrial Park, Nottingham.

Headquartered in Essex, W T Shipping has a number of facilities in the UK, including one at Heathrow, which offer Customs-approved Bonded Warehousing.

Helen Longstaffe, head of the Industrial Agency team at King Sturge's Nottingham office, who represented W T Shipping, said that the company had acquired the warehouse, for an undisclosed sum, as part of its expansion programme. "It is a significant letting and reflects continued confidence in the region as one of the country's leading locations for the logistics & distribution sectors," she added.

The building was previously occupied by Howitts Printers, which leased the property and used it as a base for its large printing operation. However, interest in securing a new occupier was only secured after the owners decided to market the property as a freehold investment.

Fisher Hargreaves Proctor represented the vendor, Claremont Property Holdings Ltd.

In 2005, UK tenanted farm land produced a total return of 9.4%, half the preceding year?s 18.6% and the lowest since 1999, the IPD UK Let Land Index 2006 showed.

By contrast, equity returns at 22% and commercial property at 19.1% outperformed the Index for the first time since 1999 and 2000 respectively. Residential property lagged behind at 8.1%.

Once again, total returns in 2005 were heavily reliant on strong capital growth, although the rate of increase was the lowest in 6 years. Capital values on all properties (including transactions) rose by 7.0% and by 6.9% on held property. The income return component edged down to 2.3%, some 20 basis points below the 2004 figure, making 2005 the lowest income-producing year since the index began in 1981.

As the tenants of agricultural holdings have continued to survive on low margins, so the importance of income as the driving force for purchase or retention of let land has dwindled. For investors in this asset class, there are "other reasons" to persevere, the main ones being fiscal, longer-term development opportunities, or the chance of obtaining vacant possession.

Despite a slowdown in the rate of return, the sustained bull market from 2000 to 2004 means that tenanted farmland is the top performing asset over 3, 5 and 10 years, ahead of IPD UK Commercial and Residential property. Let Land has also out-performed equities and gilts over 5 and 10 years. The 10-year annualised return for Let Land (including transactions) was 13.0% at the end of 2005. This is substantially above the 10-year return on UK equities at 7.9% and UK gilts at 7.7%. It is also ahead of IPD UK commercial property, which has returned 12.8%.

King Sturge is joint agent for the £135m mixed-use scheme in Leeds city centre

The Leeds offices of King Sturge and JLL have been appointed agents for the commercial element of The Gateway, a £135m mixed-use scheme in Leeds city centre.

The two leading agents, in conjunction with Development Consultant GERWYNBRYAN, will represent the commercial element of the scheme which encompasses circa 20,000 ft² of office accommodation and an additional 10,000 ft² of retail/leisure space available in units ranging from 873 ft² to 4,212 ft².

The four acre site is a project by developers Scotfield, who have shown dedication to the commercial aspect of their landmark regeneration scheme with this recent appointment.

Richard Thornton, Partner and Head of Office Agency at King Sturge, said; "We have followed The Gateway scheme with interest since its infancy and are pleased to be appointed to look after the office space, which has already received a huge amount of interest. We are also talking to a range of commercial operators such as convenience stores, crèche operators and specialist retailers and want to ensure we get the right tenant mix for the scheme. We are also looking at bar/restaurant operators for the prime space beneath the hotel."

The focus on the commercial space follows on from the huge success of the residential element of the scheme, which has seen the complete sell out of all 256 apartments in Phases 1 and 2, and 50% of the remaining 300 apartments in Phase 3 residential by Morgans City Living. The appointed contractor on the entire scheme is Shepherd Construction.

The on-site 218 bed hotel has also been pre-let over 25 years to French giant, Accor, who will operate the hotel under their new Etap brand. The investment was forward-sold by GERWYNBRYAN for a staggering £10.5m at a yield of 5.25%.

Joint venture partners AWG Property and WG Mitchell have invested over £50 million on two Glasgow properties to add to their burgeoning portfolio.

The JV has snapped up high profile office building Exchange House in the city's George Street and Shawlands shopping arcade on Kilmarnock Road.

Exchange House is a substantial 115,471 sq ft office building located in Glasgow`s prime central business district.

The £29.35 million purchase price reflects a net initial yield of 5.6% and an equivalent yield of 6.1%. It is currently let to Glasgow City Council and generates an annual income of £1,650,000.

Shawlands Shopping arcade consists of a T-shaped mall extending to 150,000 sq ft with the principle frontage on Kilmarnock Road. It also includes a four storey office building extending to 20,000 sq ft and two multi storey-car parks featuring over 300 dedicated spaces.

AWG / WG Mitchell purchased the shopping centre from a private Jersey trust for more than £21 million, reflecting an equivalent yield in excess of 6.25%.

The centre has an impressive tenant list, including J Sainsbury, Somerfield, Boots, Lloyds TSB, Farmfoods and JD Wetherspoon. Current rental income is just under £1.4 million per annum.

The two deals mean the AWG / WG Mitchell joint venture has a portfolio valued at £96 million. This joint venture is also close to concluding a further investment deal exceeding £9 million. However, in keeping with the joint venture strategy, a £30 million portfolio purchased last year is currently being marketed for sale after value being added.

Tony Donnelly, managing director of joint venture partners AWG said: "Exchange House has a rock solid tenant in the shape of Glasgow City Council with income on the current lease for many years. This makes it a terrific investment for the joint venture.

"Meanwhile, Shawlands Shopping arcade will present both partners with attractive asset management opportunities which will significantly enhance the property's market value.

"Shawlands has a large immediate catchment population and the centre already has some impressive tenants, although it has suffered from a lack of active management in recent times.

"However, we intend to engage in some strong "active" asset management with the aim of promoting Shawlands and creating a shopping experience much more in keeping with what we believe the local demographics require."

Patrick Hegarty, managing director of WG Mitchell said: "These two deals demonstrate the range of properties our joint venture partnership is focusing on.

"Together, the two purchases illustrate that we are keen to continue making creative decisions with our portfolio to maximise the returns on our investment."

AWG Property Limited is one of the leading property developers and property investment companies based in Scotland, with a portfolio split primarily between office assets and retail & leisure in the UK valued in excess of £700 million.

WG Mitchell is a privately owned property investment company that has built up a £500 million mixed property portfolio, including high profile acquisitions such as the Quay leisure park in Glasgow and the Point Hotel in Edinburgh.

WG Mitchell specialises in extracting maximum value from existing developments through centre development and active asset management. The company made its name by investing in property in Northern Ireland in the 1960s and started investing in Scotland in 1997 with the acquisition of the Wardpark industrial estate in Cumbernauld.

The Retail Marketing team of Donaldsons in Glasgow has won a coveted award following its promotional work for The Paisley Shopping Centre, located on the outskirts of Glasgow.

Awarded by Shopping Centre magazine, Donaldsons won the Sceptre award in the category 'Mall Promotion of the Year' for the firm's marketing of the shopping centre, which has helped drive footfall, with many retailers experiencing a 10% increase in sales.

Over the past year the Retail Marketing team has won a number of national and international awards for the promotion, most notably, the British Council of Shopping Centres Purple Apple Merit Award; the International Council of Shopping Centres (ICSC) European Solal Merit Award (in Istanbul) and the ICSC MAXI Merit Award (in San Diego).

Claire Wilkinson, Marketing Manager at Donaldsons, Glasgow, explained: "Research that we carried out revealed the need to 'add value' to help drive footfall at The Paisley Centre in an increasingly competitive market place. We at Donaldsons created an event which captured the publics' imagination, and with a variety of media partners and sponsors, devised the 'Week on Wheels' promotion, a Big Brother idea that saw six people living in a car for a week, with the contestants facing daily evictions by the public."

"As a result, footfall increased by an average of 12% year-on-year over the promotion period, with one day experiencing nearly a 40% increase in footfall; retailers are keen to see the promotion repeated and the profile of the shopping centre was raised over and above retailer and client expectations."

Chris Dougray, managing partner for Donaldsons, Scotland, said: "This award, along with the others the Retail Marketing team have received recently underpins our position as the number one retail agency, and highlights one of the many services we can offer."

Work has begun to develop what will become one of Scotland's most advanced and integrated specialist industrial parks for chemical, technology and manufacturing companies.

Earls Gate Park, a £50 million joint-arrangement development between Scottish Enterprise Forth Valley and international chemical company KemFine, will provide unique accommodation for up to 20 businesses in the Grangemouth area.

The first phase of infrastructure work is starting this month with a new site access road being built. The £1.2 million contract to construct the road has been awarded to Realm Construction Ltd. of Lochgelly, part of the Purvis Group of Companies, and work is expected to be complete by October 2006, paving the way for the next phase of construction to begin.

The 30 acre development has been hailed as a unique offering in Scotland due to utilities which will be available to tenants such as KemFine's state of the art effluent treatment plant and combined heat and power station with motorway, rail and sea access.

Joint-arrangement partner, Kemfine, hopes to stimulate growth and improve the operational efficiency of the site. The project is expected to help safeguard the future of 650 existing jobs at the current companies operating on Kemfine's Grangemouth site with the potential to create up to 950 new jobs on the site.

Early indications are that the new industrial park will prove an exciting proposition for investment projects with two potential projects already in progress.

Tom Shields, managing director of Kemfine UK Ltd, commented: "Today is an important event in the ongoing development of Grangemouth as a key centre of industry and technology for the 21st century. This venture is an exciting way of creating wealth and generating new jobs by leveraging use of the high quality infrastructure and facilities that already exist on KemFine's Grangemouth site.

"I am delighted with the early success in attracting new tenants who wish to extend their business or move their operations to this welcoming environment for industry and technology."

Stuart Ogg, acting chief executive of SE Forth Valley, said: "This is a major milestone in the development and provision of high spec industrial premises for the chemical and manufacturing sector in the Grangemouth area.

"Grangemouth, identified as a key location in the Scottish Enterprise Strategic Investment Plan, has long been seen as the hub of Scotland's chemical industry. We hope this site encourages more investment from businesses operating in the sector who are looking to take advantage of the excellent cost effective utilities and lower cost environment without giving up their links to the cities or transport networks.

"Not only will this development provide valuable industrial premises for the sector but it will contribute significantly to the ten year regeneration initiative, My Future's In Falkirk."

NAI Fuller Peiser has promoted nine members of staff to associate across the UK.

Caroline Shimmin and Emma Nicholson in the agency team at the London office and Steve Brittle in industrial agency at the Manchester office; Naomi Goldthorpe in L & T at the Birmingham office and Paul Lejkowski in L & T at the Edinburgh office; James Withall in construction at the Bristol office and Richard Wood in construction at the Sheffield office; Nicola Forster in planning at London and Jude Neill in marketing at London.

Martin Coles, managing partner at NAI Fuller Peiser, comments: "All of the above have made a significant contribution to the business and I wish them well in their new roles."

The development of England's national stadium, Wembley, has been hit by further construction problems that are preventing its opening until 2007. Although the £757m project was due to be completed in September 2006, construction may not now be completed in time for the 2007 FA Cup Final.

Multiplex confirmed that it has applied for a contractual extension until October next year, but insisted that the latest delays have been caused by Wembley National Stadium Limited (WNSL).

Multiplex confirmed that the pitch, together with 'associated work', has now been completed. However, 20 000 seats await installation, steelwork requires final painting, the north roof is not yet complete and electrical systems require final commissioning.

Kenmore, acting on behalf of the Adam and Company Property Partnership and represented by King Sturge, has sold two retail units at Whistleberry Retail Park in Blantyre for £5.43m reflecting a net initial yield of 5.5%. The investment has been purchased by Edgemore Ltd.

Unit 1 extends to 30,340 ft² plus 167 car parking spaces and is currently let to Focus (DIY) Ltd on a 25-year lease which runs until 2019. The smaller Unit 2 extends to 5,500 ft² and 37 car parking spaces and is occupied by Farmfoods Ltd on a 15-year lease. The rental income on the two units is £315,900 per annum.

Gregor Martin, Director of Kenmore said: "This was a typical Kenmore deal, where we bought the site with the Focus unit and subsequently added value by developing the Farmfoods unit and selling on."

Kenmore Investments was represented by Chris Macfarlane of King Sturge, whilst Edgemore Ltd was represented by Culverwell.

Carey Jones Architects is pleased to announce the recent completion of North Street, a £9.5 million mixed-use scheme for Leeds on behalf of City Wall.

North Street comprises 80 one and two bedroom apartments over seven floors of which those facing the South and West look over a modern courtyard at the hub of the development. The commercial element encompasses 22,500 sq ft of custom-made offices for Fox Hayes, spilt over four levels with a glazed top floor conference facility. The whole scheme sits over a naturally ventilated car park with space for 80 vehicles.

The original brief called for an innovative design and site response coupled with satisfaction of a traditional solicitor's practice and aesthetic aspirations. The development, which is predominantly formed of white Spanish Dolomite, forms a robust response to both the environment and the brief.


Project Team

Developer: City Wall

Architect: Carey Jones

Main Contractor: Barr Construction

Quantity Surveyors: Burtenshaws LLP

Acting on behalf of Earlswood Properties, Culverwell have recently purchased the 3324 sqft property 208-210 Union Street, Aberdeen's main city centre street. The property was sold for £1.3 million and is let to the global coffee shop chain, Starbucks, and Aberdeen's largest legal firm, Paull & Williamson, at £45,999 and £35,000 respectively per annum. The purchase price reflects a net yield of 5.82%.

A project that has breathed new life and brought nearly 100 jobs into a city block of Edinburgh's Old Town, has won a prestigious national award.

EDI's Tron project has won the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) Scotland Regeneration award for 2006, against competition from across Scotland. Now the Tron project will be entered into the worldwide final of the RICS awards to be held in London in October.

The project, which took 10 years to complete, has seen an entire block rejuvenated thanks to a £15m regeneration programme, led by EDI. A key aim has been to bring back life to the traditional streets and closes, re-establishing them as public thoroughfares and places for people to live, work and enjoy themselves.

The RICS award recognises excellence in the built environment. The judging panel said that the Tron area had "successfully achieved its aim of bringing real and active use to traditional streets and closes while interweaving historic and new buildings."

Led by The EDI Group, the Tron regeneration was delivered with the help of partners including The Burrell Company, Scottish Enterprise, The City of Edinburgh Council, Castle Rock Edinvar Housing Association and the Tron Square residents.

Described as "the biggest intervention in the fabric of the Old Town since Patrick Geddes", the Tron regeneration has successfully combined a range of imaginative new buildings with old, including refurbished listed buildings.

Comprising modern apartments, both social housing and apartments for sale, new offices and shops, new restaurants, refurbished District Courts, a new hotel and a purpose-built nursery, the Tron project has increased the number of people living in the Old Town and acted as a catalyst for more than 100 new jobs.

Graeme Hartley, Director of RICS Scotland, said: "Bringing together a number of agencies, community groups and commercial interests to develop a way forward was no mean feat, but this co-ordination was vital to the success of the project. The result is a vibrant space that meets modern requirements but has retained the character and charm of Edinburgh's Old Town.

"The fact that the Tron project created jobs shows that successful regeneration can have a positive impact on lives as well as buildings. It is a great credit to all those involved and proves that it is possible to incorporate new development into an historic setting."

Ian Wall, Chief Executive of EDI, said: "Regeneration is about much more than bricks and mortar and it's also about being there for the long haul: we believe this project clearly illustrates those points. It also demonstrates the tenacity of our team and partners in overcoming legal, financial and physical hurdles to deliver a series of commercially successful projects.

"As important, we have helped to bring people back into a semi abandoned quarter of the Old Town. People now live, work, eat and play in the old closes off the High Street. Hunter Square is busy all year round and, at Festival time, provides a popular outdoor performance space."

The judges of the RICS Scotland awards also praised the team's abilities to deliver a project that involved a number of agencies and partners within a historic and challenging site.

The topography of the Old Town means the sites are steeply sloping along the closes off the Royal Mile, bringing their own technical challenges. The buildings to be converted were all listed from the 18th and 19th century, while the new build sites faced archaeological digs before construction could start. Two of the development sites had severe access restrictions through medieval wynds and pends, so construction materials were carried in by hand.

Drivers Jonas' specialist sports team, DJ Sport, has been appointed as Project Manager for a new £23m Regional Sports Centre in Aberdeen. The Regional Sports Centre is one of six regional centres planned for Scotland and is being funded by the University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen City Council and sportscotland.

The centre has been designed by the Scottish Architect, Reiach & Hall, and will be built next to the existing Chris Anderson 400m outdoor athletics track to create a hub of sporting excellence. The centre will include an indoor synthetic football pitch, an indoor athletics centre with an indoor sprint track, high jump, long jump and throw areas, a 9-court sports hall, fitness centre, dance studio and other sports facilities.

David Beattie, Director of Sports Development at the University of Aberdeen, said: "we are delighted to appoint DJ Sport as Project Manager. We went through a rigorous tender process to select the Project Manager and were very impressed by DJ Sport's track record of delivering high value sports facilities. "

Stephen Jepson, an Associate at Drivers Jonas who is leading the DJ Sport team, commented: "This is a very exciting project and one that DJ Sport are delighted to be involved in. The finished centre will provide facilities of the highest quality and will be something that Aberdeen can be very proud of."

The design of the centre is well underway and is due for completion in late 2008.

PruPIM on behalf of its Prudential Life Fund has sold the long leasehold interest in 10-11 Grosvenor Place and 28-36 Headfort Place, London, SW1 to the Central London Office Fund, managed by Henderson Global Investors, for £15.72m reflecting an equivalent yield of 4.5%.

The period office building comprises approximately 29,000 sq ft arranged over lower ground, ground and six upper floors. The property is held on a lease expiring in 145 years by Grosvenor Estate at a rent of £21,000 pa. It is multi-let to tenants including Peter Hambro Mining, Braemar Seascope and Trafalgar Management at an average rent of £30.68 per sq ft (£330 per sq m). The 5th and 6th floors are currently vacant and require refurbishment.

Russell Bradman, director of investment at PruPIM, comments: "The sale follows a review of strategy in relation to our fund?s central London office exposure, this property has performed well for our policyholders and we are very pleased with the price achieved."

Savills advised PruPIM and Cushman Wakefield advised the purchaser.

A private investor, advised by Strutt & Parker, has sold Centrix House, 5 Oxford Road, Newbury, to Argyle Ventures for £2.02m, reflecting a net initial yield of 7.48%.

The 10,336 sq ft office building is let to Centrix Networking for a further 3.75 years. The building currently generates an income of £160,000 per annum.

Tudor Toone acted for Argyle Ventures.

Kenmore, acting on behalf of the Adam and Company Property Partnership and represented by King Sturge, has sold two retail units at Whistleberry Retail Park in Blantyre for £5.43 million reflecting a net initial yield of 5.5%. The investment has been purchased by Edgemore Ltd.

Unit 1 extends to 30,340 ft2 plus 167 car parking spaces and is currently let to Focus (DIY) Ltd on a 25-year lease which runs until 2019. The smaller Unit 2 extends to 5,500 ft2 and 37 car parking spaces and is occupied by Farmfoods Ltd on a 15-year lease. The rental income on the two units is £315,900 per annum.

Gregor Martin, Director of Kenmore said: "This was a typical Kenmore deal, where we bought the site with the Focus unit and subsequently added value by developing the Farmfoods unit and selling on."

Kenmore Investments was represented by Chris Macfarlane of King Sturge, whilst Edgemore Ltd was represented by Culverwell.

AWG Property and HF Developments will deliver a first class new office development on the site of the former Glasgow GPO building after their ambitious proposals were given the go-ahead by city planners.

Glasgow City Council approved AWG Property / HF Developments' plans to create 127,000 sq ft of state-of-the-art office space at Number One George Square.

The joint venture will now start work redeveloping the A-listed Victorian building, bought from Stefan King's G1 Group in excess of £11 million in November of last year.

Once completed, the development could lure as many as 1200 new jobs to the city centre.

The development promises to provide first class quality office accommodation. New public realm space will also be available on the ground floor to engage passers by and allow the people of Glasgow and visitors to the city to benefit from the new site.

The façade of the 127 -year-old building will be retained while a striking glass roof extension will be created.

Stephen Kelly, director at AWG Property said: "We're delighted our proposals to create an iconic development for the centre of Glasgow have been given the green light by the planning committee.

"Number One George Square will occupy one of the most prominent sites, not only in Glasgow, but in Scotland as a whole.

"Potential occupiers have already started enquiring about locating to the site and many agents are predicting Glasgow could suffer from a lack of Grade A office space in future years, which could prevent potential investment in the city.

"It is vital we get this development right and we are confident that the location, design and configuration of this development make it ideal for a single occupier keen to make this its corporate or Scottish HQ.

"We are in active discussions with a number of interested parties."

The proposed refurbishment and extension of the former post office building will help to reactivate the southern corner of the Square. The development is expected to have an end development value in excess of £70 million.

William Hill, managing director of HF Developments, said: "Now that planning consent has been granted, we can really start work in earnest.

"It has been pleasing to see so much interest in this site already, as I think everyone in Glasgow has a desire to see this particular property brought back into use again following so many years of lying vacant.

"We aim to keep the frontage of the building intact but will create a modern, desirable and employee-friendly facility behind it, which will rival any office development in Scotland.

"We look forward to starting work on site within days."

The demolition and façade retention contractor Coleman has been appointed and will complete around Christmas. Following this the main contractor will start construction of the new building inside the retained façade.