Commercial Property News

Henry Boot Developments Limited has revealed plans for Wharf Retail Park, a major 150,000 sq.ft shopping scheme to be developed on derelict land in Grimsby town centre.

Already eagerly welcomed by the local community as an exciting extension to the town centre, the 150,000 sq.ft development will help regenerate the area and provide much needed new retail space with a 290-space car park. It will also include some 25 apartments and a water sports centre, and incorporate open spaces and riverside walks.

A number of national stores are keen to move into Grimsby, and Henry Boot Developments is already in talks with a number of potential tenants for the scheme.

Vivienne Clements, director with Henry Boot Developments, said: "It is a very positive scheme for Grimsby, giving greater opportunities for additional high street names to move into the town. We will be providing large units of between 10,000 and 30,000 sq.ft that will be of interest to major retailers."

It is hoped that the planning application will be considered by North East Lincolnshire Council in the near future."

Property adviser GVA Grimley has agreed a 10-year lease of all eight floors of Hanover House on behalf of Registers of Scotland.

The deal will see the Government agency move from its current Glasgow base at 150 St Vincent Street to take sole occupancy of the 35,000 sq ft property at a rental of £14.50 per sq ft.

Commenting on the deal, Colin Mackenzie, partner at GVA Grimley, said: "The occupier market in Glasgow is extremely competitive and the landlord had some serious interest in the building from a number of other parties. The successful completion of the deal is a result for Registers of Scotland.

"At the moment, there's a lot of attention being placed on new Grade A stock in Glasgow. However, this deal reflects the ongoing interest in the office market as a whole. Overall demand from occupiers is still very strong in Glasgow, following last year's performance, and this is pushing up the value of solid Grade B buildings such as Hanover House."

The property, situated on the corner of Douglas Street and Cadogan Street, was purchased only a year ago by the current owner.

A refurbishment programme involving the installation of a new reception area, raised access floors and suspended ceilings incorporating LG3 lighting was completed recently.

Douglas Watson of Registers of Scotland, added: "The lease on our current building expires this year, so we were keen to find an affordable location in Glasgow and Hanover House was the ideal solution.

"The refurbishments undertaken by the landlord, added to the fact that we could occupy the entire building, were real selling points."

Atisreal and Ryden advised the landlord.

Savills' out of town retail team has recently been retained by North West furniture retailer, CSL, to assist on its expansion drive throughout 2007.

CSL already has 10 existing stores throughout the North West and, as part of its on-going strategy to expand into prime retail areas, it has appointed Savills to acquire a further eight stores.

Craig Hudson, director at Savills, comments: "We are delighted to be retained by CSL, particularly during these exciting times of expansion for the company. The CSL brand is well-established in the North West, with current stores benefiting from key retail locations. We are looking forward to working with them to meet the new expansion objectives."

British Land has unveiled investment partner proposals for its regional shopping centre, Meadowhall, in Sheffield.

Investors have the opportunity to acquire a stake in the Centre while British Land expects to remain the largest individual investor. It will also act as Fund and Property Asset Manager.

Bob Bowden, British Land Investment Director said: "Meadowhall is the jewel among shopping centres, ranked by many as one of the UK's top three. Its enduring appeal to retailers, based on an exceptional shopping catchment area, is unique. We have invested £90m since 2005, updating and extending the Centre which will further drive shopper demand. We expect to remain major investors, whilst the capital element realised will be recycled into our £4bn development pipeline."

British Land signalled last year that it intended to seek one or more investment partners for Meadowhall - one of only six out-of-town super regional shopping centres in the UK - once it had converted to REIT status. British Land has now appointed agents Jones Lang LaSalle, Colliers CRE and Smith Young to market the investment proposal.

British Land's retail portfolio is valued at circa £10bn with Meadowhall being the largest single retail asset. The shopping centre first opened in September 1990. The Centre, together with certain adjoining assets, is valued at just under £1.7bn. Annual net rental income is in excess of £75m per annum. ERV is in the order of £82m per annum. Rents have grown from circa £48m when the Centre was acquired in 1999.

Leading global property consultant, Knight Frank has sold a 32-acre site in Coatbridge for £17 million to Barratt West Scotland on behalf of its client, HJ Banks.

The site which was on the former Castle Cement Works, just north of Coatbridge town centre, has been given outline planning consent for a residential development of 262 units by North Lanarkshire Council.

The Castle development has been cleared and prepared for development and is situated between Hollandhurst Road and Coltswood Road with playing fields and local authority housing to the south of the site.

The site has been sold subject to Barratt West Scotland entering into a Section 75 Agreement to deal with a number of off site road and education issues, which include the provision of two mini roundabouts and a footpath. The development will be accessed by the formation of a new roundabout off Coltswood Road, for which a Roads Construction Consent has been submitted.

The new sale comes on the back of Knight Frank's recently published review of residential development in Scotland - Smarter Scotland - which highlighted North Lanarkshire as a future hotspot for new-build homes.

The strategic location of North Lanarkshire, sandwiched between Glasgow and Edinburgh, makes it home to a 27,000-strong commuter population. The area's relatively low capital values, its high unemployment and steady household grown (3.6 per cent by 2010) means North Lanarkshire equate to one of Scotland's most affordable locations with strong growth potential.

Andrew Johnston, Partner at Knight Frank in Scotland, said, "North Lanarkshire in general is an attractive area for the housebuilder as there are more people commuting into the city and the area has relatively low capital values. This site in particular is close to Coatbridge town centre, which offers a variety of amenities, including train stations, bus routes and good transport links to the M8 and M80.

"The site itself is in a mixed-use area with an existing residential and industrial area. It is also close to a significant area of countryside which, together with its close proximity to the town centre, will be attractive to any housebuyer."

Esk Properties has completed the sale of its hotel development site at Forrest Road and Bristo Place, Edinburgh to Hotel du Vin. Hotel du Vin paid £2.5million for the site and has obtained planning consent for a 47 bedroom hotel in a mixture of new build and retained historic buildings.

Esk Managing Director Grant Aitken said: "Having considered various development solutions for this site we are pleased to have attracted such a high quality hotel operator to Edinburgh. The consented scheme is both an imaginative architectural solution on a complex site and an exciting addition to the capital's range of hotels."

The UK residential investment market saw a leaped return to mid-teen performance in 2006, with assets let on modern leases generating an overall return to investors of 16.8% for the year, marking the end of three years of decelerating returns.

Total returns for the year were in line with those on equities and only just below those on commercial property. Bond returns were marginally negative thanks to rising yields (-0.1%). Over six years, both residential and commercial property delivered returns just shy of 14% - well ahead of equities and bonds.

A return to double-digit performance was also witnessed at the regional level, with the majority of regions achieving returns in excess of 11.0%. In a continuing trend, the range of regional returns in 2006 was almost entirely driven by relative capital appreciation rates as income returns converged yet further. The difference in income return between the regions with the highest, Scotland (3.7%), and lowest, Central London (3.1%), levels fell to just 68 basis points in 2006. In line with previous years, almost 36% of gross income was lost due to voids (8%), maintenance costs, management costs, insurance, utilities and other irrecoverable costs.

Co-founding Director of IPD, Ian Cullen said, "These impressive 2006 returns reflect the performance of a small group of specialist residential investors. IPD's major project for 2007/8 is to work closely with the BPF to deliver a major increase in our coverage of this market - targeting significant parts of the estimated £511bn of private housing investment reported by Sue Foxley at the IPD Residential Launch this week".

The UK is not short of residential property indices, but these all track headline capital appreciation - whether by directly measuring sale prices (Land Registry), compiling the price movements from mortgage applications (Nationwide & Halifax) or by tracking asking prices (Rightmove.)

By contrast, the IPD Residential Index applies the same holistic measurement techniques used in its commercial property indices. Capital growth therefore takes account of capital expenditure and the income return to the investor is captured in order to calculate a total return.

Commercial property consultancy Knight Frank has strengthened its Sheffield presence with the promotion of a new partner.

Tim Bottrill has been promoted to partner in the agency and development department.

Tim joined straight from university in 1997 and now specialises in all areas of commercial property including retail and industrial. Tim's clients have ranged from public authorities and governmental bodies to major contractors and developers within the region and nationally.

Knight Frank's Sheffield office has five other partners covering various property disciplines. The agency and development group is supported by specialist teams providing advice on investment, retail and leisure, residential development, professional and building consultancy.

Peter Whiteley, partner at the Sheffield office, said: "Tim's promotion exemplifies the strength of the agency and development team and the level of work we are dealing with throughout the Yorkshire region and beyond. The prosperity and renaissance of the Sheffield City Region means we are ideally located to benefit from this successful period in the Sheffield office.

"Tim's promotion adds to the firmly established senior management team delivering innovative solutions to clients across a wide range of sectors."

Bowmer & Kirkland has negotiated its largest ever scheme - more than £130m - to build the Eurocentral Business Park in Glasgow. The scale of the scheme is huge with 10 individual office buildings providing one million sq ft of accommodation in a landscaped setting.

The project will be built on the site of the former Chunghwa Picture Tubes factory, which axed 600 jobs in 2002 when production transferred to China.

Planning has been approved for this major development which is being built for client Tritax. B&K; will start on site in June and construction will be completed by March 2010.

Bowmer & Kirkland Area Director, Alan Johansen, said: "This important project provides us with a significant work stream over the next three years to further supplement our continued growth in Scotland."

The park will incorporate amenities such as a restaurant, gymn, creche and retail space.

B&K;'s major currrent projects include a £57m office development at Colmore Plaza in Birmingham which will be completed in 2008 and a £45m project to build new headquarters for BP in Aberdeen.

Commercial property consultant Ryden has promoted Andrew Cliff, Steven Gay and Richard Porter to the firm's Partnership taking the total number of Partners to 27. All three have been recognised for making an outstanding contribution to the growth of the firm in recent years.

A further eight staff members have been promoted to Associate level, taking the total number of Associates to 23, and two have been promoted to Senior Surveyor. Appointments take effect from 1 May 2007.

Andrew Cliff is based in the firm's Leeds office where he runs the Building Consultancy department. Andrew is one of the driving forces in the expansion of Ryden in the North of England. His recent projects have included the refurbishment of the Midland Hotel in Manchester and the refurbishment of the Amber Business Centre in Riddings.

Steven Gay and Richard Porter work in the firm's Investment & Finance group. Steven is a key member of the Glasgow team where he specialises in offices and has recently acquired Shaftsbury House and Intercity House for redevelopment. Richard is based in Edinburgh and works throughout the UK as one of the firm's investment experts. His projects have included the purchase of the corner block at 135 Princes Street in Edinburgh and the purchase of the Euston Novotel in London.

Five of the eight Associate promotions were in the firm's Glasgow office which has experienced a strong increase in turnover. Derek Archer in Investment & Finance, Charlie Lawrence in Industrial Agency & Development, Colin Tsang in Building Consultancy, Stephen Brown in Professional and Ged Hainey in the Planning team were all rewarded for their commitment to developing the business.

Building Consultancy Associate promotions were also made in Edinburgh, Alison Baker, and Aberdeen, Kenneth Macpherson. Paul Richardson, also in Aberdeen, was promoted to Associate within the Agency team.

The two Senior Surveyor appointments were Tim Jacobsen in Office Agency & Development and Raymond Burns in Professional, both based in Glasgow.

Fiona Morton, Ryden Managing Partner said "The volume of promotions we are awarding this year reflects the value we place on our staff and our ability to reward them for their dedication and enthusiasm. Steven Gay, Richard Porter and Andrew Cliff have each personally contributed to the success of Ryden and their new ideas and creativity will help shape the future of our firm. I am proud Ryden continues to produce so much home grown talent and we can offer clients consistent and dedicated teams. This is a great group, their energy and ability add significantly to Ryden and I am delighted with their success".

Liverpool Victoria Friendly Society, advised by Edgerley Simpson Howe & Partners, has sold the freehold investment in High Point Retail Park, Grimsby to Canada Life for £11.3m.

The property comprises three retail warehouse units totalling 32,896 sq ft (3,056 sq m). The units are let to Currys, Carpet Right and Maplin Electronics on 25-year leases until 2022, at a total rent of £376,183 pa.

The deal reflects a net initial yield of 3.15%, with rent reviews on all 3 units due in Autumn this year the reversionary yield is 4.84% on current ERV.

Tony Rogers of ESHP comments: "This is a sound investment with good covenants and excellent rental growth potential. In line with the market increase, the next rent reviews could see rents jump from £11 to £20 per sq ft."

Canada Life was advised by CBRE.

Ayr Central has signed a deal with River Island, which will see the high street fashion retailer open its doors at Ayr's £75m shopping centre in June 2007.

River Island will take 12,000 sq ft at the award-winning 300,000 sq ft centre on a 15 year lease, vacating the Kyle Centre in Ayr to take up home in Ayr Central. The retailer will take 6,000 sq ft on the ground floor plus a further 6,000 sq ft on a mezzanine level. River Island is set to start fitting out its unit in two weeks' time.

Alan Kinloch, Regional Development Director from Henry Boot Developments, said: "It's taken over two years to secure River Island but I am delighted to have concluded legals last week. There's no doubt that River Island is a premium retail brand which further strengthens our line up in Ayr Central. Certainly landing River Island is a great start to the year and signals that Ayr Central is now viewed by retailers as the prime development in South Scotland."

David Simmons from Jones Lang LaSalle's Glasgow office said: "River Island is one of the most exciting high street fashion brands and this letting will further strengthen Ayr Central's appeal to shoppers."

In addition to existing stores Debenhams, Primark, H&M;, HMV, Au Natural and Next, shoe store Clarks is set to sign up for the centre over the next few weeks.

Ayr Central currently attracts 104 per cent of the immediate catchment area every week, with this figure growing at six per cent per week. In addition Ayr Central has helped Ayr rise from 16th to fifth strongest retail destination in Scotland above Braehead, Glasgow Fort, Perth, Falkirk and East Kilbride.

Henry Boot Developments acquired the Ayr site in 2001 and construction commenced on Ayr Central in January 2004. Henry Boot Developments fund the majority of its developments using internal resources and currently has £300m allocated for 2007/2008. Henry Boot Developments opened a Scottish office in early 2001 and Ayr Central is part of the company's planned programme of development activity north of the border.

Acting on behalf of supermarket giant Tesco, international property consultancy Knight Frank, has sold a 1.1 acre site in Stonehaven, Aberdeenshire for a new residential development.

The site has been acquired by local developer, Kirkwood Homes Limited, for a price in excess of £1m with planning permission granted for 42 private residential flats.

The land, located on Cowie Mill Road, forms part of the former Commodore Hotel site, on the edge of the town centre. The plot is ideally situated adjacent to Baird Park and in close proximity to the Beach. It also benefits from links to the A90 at the North end of the town and is close to recent residential development at Glenury distillery site.

Chris Ditchfield, Partner, Knight Frank said: "The land will make a desirable location for residential accommodation so we are not surprised at the price achieved given the booming North East property market".

Civil engineering equipment, owned by a Glasgow-based company that filed for voluntary liquidation with the loss of 150 jobs, is to go under the auctioneer's hammer on Wednesday, April 18th.

The assets of the Culdaff Construction Group are being sold off by plant & machinery specialists from King Sturge on the instructions of the joint liquidators, Blair Nimmo and Tony Friar, of Glasgow-based business advisors KPMG.

Gordon Calder, a partner at King Sturge, said that he expected a "high level of interest" to be shown in the sale from dealers and end-users, who would be bidding for more than 200 lots. He added that JCBs and other contractor?s plant, together with trenchers, tipper trucks, motor vehicles, trailers, fork lift trucks, office furnishings and workshop equipment, would be up for sale.

The auction is being held at Culdaff Construction's main base in Jessie Street, Polmadie, Glasgow, on Wednesday, April 18th, commencing at 12 noon. However, potential buyers will be able to view the items on Tuesday, April 17th, between 9 am and 4.30 pm and from 9 am on the morning of the sale.

Culdaff Construction, a £12 million turnover company, went into voluntary liquidation last month, with its demise being blamed on the dramatic increases in oil prices, which had impacted on its profitability. Most of its staff operated in Scotland but redundancies also occurred in Leeds, Teesside and South Wales

Brixton has bought the Pisces Industrial Estate at Village Way, Trafford Park, Manchester for £5.76m from ING UK Real Estate Income Trust Ltd.

The 65,600 sq ft estate, which was completed in 1998, comprises two units let to Boots The Chemist and CMP Batteries at a total rent roll of £328,704 pa. The purchase shows a net initial yield of 5.4%, and an equivalent and reversionary yield of 5.7%.

The estate directly abuts Brixton's Mosley Industrial Estate. The company's ownership in Trafford Park now extends to more than 2.4m sq ft of industrial and warehouse space on 140 acres.

King Sturge advised Brixton on the purchase whilst the vendor, ING UK Real Estate Income Trust Ltd, was represented by GVA Grimley.

Warner Estate Holdings and Morley Fund Management have today announced the acquisition of St Magnus House in Aberdeen on behalf of the Apia Regional Office Fund from Stainton Capital (Foxhound) Ltd for £23.7m. This reflects a net initial yield of 5.76% and reversion to 5.88% on conclusion of newly created car space lettings.

St Magnus House is a prime city centre office building overlooking Aberdeen harbour and provides 80,180sq ft of refurbished office space over six floors with 129 car parking spaces.

The property is fully let on six leases to CNR International (UK) Ltd, Lundin Thistle Ltd, the Scottish Ministers and Nestor Primecare Services Ltd. The current rental income of £1.443m per annum equates to a low average rental rate of £18.00 per sq ft.

Robert Game, Managing Director of Apia comments: "St Magnus House represents an excellent acquisition for the Fund, complementing its existing holding in the City. Aberdeen is a favoured location due to the strength of its economy and the restricted supply of good quality office space."

The Apia Regional Office Fund is one of a few specialists investing solely in offices outside Central London. This acquisition follows the purchase of New Castle House, Nottingham in January this year and takes the Fund to £497m across 22 properties.

Apia is asset managed by Warner Estate and fund managed by Morley Fund Management.

CB Richard Ellis has attracted IT specialists Aspect Tools Ltd to Playfair House, Broughton Street Lane in Edinburgh.

Aspect Tools has taken the third floor of the recently refurbished office building, which extends to 3,005 sq ft.

The five year lease has been agreed at a rent equating to £14.50 per sq ft approximately.

This is the second letting within the building since it was refurbished, following the letting to Wallace Whittle, which leased the first floor.

Alison Tinker of Aspect Tools commented: "We had been seeking good quality, centrally-located, open plan offices for some time and Playfair House satisfied our requirement ideally."

Allan Matthews, Director of Business Space at CB Richard Ellis said: "We are confident that the quality of accommodation at Playfair House is exactly the type that occupiers continue to seek.

"It is hoped we will shortly be able to announce further lettings for the two remaining suites at ground and second floors."

CB Richard Ellis acted for the landlord, Braveheart Properties Ltd, while Ryden acted for Aspect Tools Ltd.

Atisreal's Leeds investment team, acting on behalf of Morley Fund Management, has acquired York House in Leeds City Centre for £4.8m from London based property group, Rotch.

York House, situated on York Place in the heart of the traditional office core, comprises a 23,850sq ft modern purpose built office providing four floors of good quality office space, the majority of which is currently occupied by the Secretary of State. Atisreal's Leeds office agency team has also been appointed to let the remaining 4,004 sq ft first floor refurbished office suite.

The deal, which represents a 5.35% initial yield, is the latest in a continuing relationship between Atisreal and Morley, which is a wholly owned, independently managed UK-based asset management business of Aviva plc. Morley currently manage £165.89bn of assets, including £29 billion in property, making them one of the largest and most successful managers of property assets in the UK and Europe.

Last year, Morley acquired 33 Park Place, the adjacent building to York House and subsequently successfully secured a flurry of lettings including RG Group, UK Passport Office, Willis Group, SGP Architects and most recently, TUC. Prior to Morley's acquisition and Atisreal's appointment as letting agents, only one of the floors at 33 Park Place was let, with Brit Insurance and Turley Associates occupying the first floor, and now following the lettings success only one floor is available, part of which is under offer, in the 41,975sq ft building.

Rebecca Farnsworth, Director of Investment at Atisreal, Leeds says; "We're delighted to have secured the acquisition of York House for Morley Fund Management. York House represents a strong investment providing a number of opportunities in the medium term given its excellent location, on site parking and proximity to 33 Park Place which is a proven success. This acquisition will further strengthen Morley's interests in Leeds City Centre and we look forward to the continued relationship."

Renos Booth, Fund Manager at Morley FM, continues; "Following on from the success we have enjoyed with 33 Park Place, the acquisition of York House was a natural progression. Leeds is such a key regional centre and as a fund management house we have been keen to invest in property within the City. York House is within the prime core of Leeds business district and with its excellent floorplates, presented an ideal investment opportunity. We have been impressed with the commitment of Atisreal on 33 Park Place and it seemed entirely appropriate to re-appoint them on this exciting new venture."

Nikki Moore, Associate Director at Atisreal says; "Morley's flexible letting strategy has proven beneficial to Leeds occupiers. Morley successfully responds to market demand by offering shorter term leases and subdividing floors to accommodate current requirements as well as maintaining competitive rentals. We have taken advantage of a gap in the Leeds office market and will undoubtedly enjoy continued success with the remaining space at York House."

West Properties are delighted to announce the recent addition to their portfolio of projects - Ramada Renaissance Hotel and a joining NCP car park, Deansgate, Manchester purchased from Quintain Estates. Contracts were exchanged on Friday 31 March 2007.

The site is located at the junction of Blackfriars and Deansgate and is directly opposite No. 1 Deansgate and Harvey Nichols.

The mixed use re-development opportunity represents another strategic project for West Properties in Manchester.

Sir Richard Leese, Leader of Manchester City Council commented "The redevelopment of the Ramada building has been a priority for us for some time. We are delighted that we have a new owner who is committed to early and comprehensive redevelopment. We look forward to working with them to ensure that this important part of the city centre is regenerated."

The redevelopment of the site will be a priority for West Properties.

A new Morrisons supermarket building in Erskine has been completed and handed over - keeping it on schedule for its summer opening.

Dawn Construction, one of Scotland's leading independent construction and property developers, built the 40,000sqm, development, with a mezzanine level of 500 sq.m, within the Bridgewater Shopping Centre during a 30-week period.

The build project - which was preceded by a challenging 15 week enabling works package - involved the construction of the shell retail unit with associated external works including car parking, service yard and reconfiguration of the existing parking.

Morrisons is expected to open its new supermarket in August, creating a number of jobs for the surrounding area and providing a more convenient and attractive shopping destination for the local population, who can also expect to see a renovation to the other areas of their local shopping centre.

The Erskine supermarket is one of a number of retail projects Dawn Construction, part of the Dawn Group, expects to deliver in the coming months. These include the Antonine Shopping Centre in Cumbernauld and the Glasgow North Retail Park in Robroyston.

Ray Eve, managing director of Dawn Construction, said: "This was a challenging site to complete due to the high number of people continuing to use the existing live shopping centre, however, we completed the job to the highest standard with very little disruption to the public.

"The new development offers vastly improved facilities compared to its predecessor and has been built to be easily accessible for local residents. The new Morrisons supermarket will certainly strengthen the economy of Erskine not only by creating jobs, but by keeping consumer spend in the town."

Commercial and residential property lender Dunbar Bank has had a strong first quarter and is well on its way to achieving its plans to increase its loan book by 10% to £680m.

According to the bank's chief executive Andy Deller, "new accepted business, in the first quarter, was well over £150m."

The bank, which is a member of the Zurich Financial Services Group, has historically generated the bulk of its business from London and the South-East. But it has been quietly building up a regional network. Dunbar now also has offices in Birmingham, Bristol, Glasgow, Leeds and Newcastle and is currently recruiting for its office in Manchester.

London still remains its primary market but the regions are expected to become increasingly important for the future growth of the business.

Chief executive Andy Deller said: "It would be fair to say we have a higher profile in London and the South-East and that the regional lending markets are fiercely competitive. But our bespoke approach to clients, complemented with our reputation for flexibility and fast decision making is increasingly differentiating us from other banks".

Last year the bank made profits of £38m before tax. Significant deals included the bank lending £20m to Thornsett Homes for the development of 174 apartments in London and a £25m financing for City Living Developments for 180 apartments in Norwich.

Deller continued: "This year the challenge is to maintain the momentum of the business. This will be demonstrated by the bank writing in excess of £500m of new business to our balance sheet, with a net increase in total balances of more than £100m."

The bank can extend up to £30m to a single client on a single deal but it can subparticipate on larger loans with its Irish-based parent, Zurich Bank.

Deller explained that as well as seeking to grow the provision of shorter term acquisition and development finance it is also aiming to have brokered £60m to £100m, of medium term funding for portfolio refinancing, by the end of the year. This is also provided by Zurich Bank.

Miller Developments has further strengthened its Scottish office portfolio with the £5m off-market acquisition of Aspect Court in Glasgow.

The 27,000sq ft building on the city centre's West Regent Street was purchased in association with Northstar Development Solutions from North London-based property company Schreiber Developments.

Current tenants are Lamusking Architects, Fusion Insurance, Higham Insurance and Call One Direct - all on short-term leases - with 5,400sq ft of vacant accommodation. The passing rent is £290,000 per annum with the ability to significantly improve this through refurbishment and active management. The net initial yield is 5.5%.

Keith Mackie, Development Manager, Miller Developments, said: "The Glasgow office market is very robust and the acquisition of Aspect Court provides us with a range of options for improving the asset including the refurbishment of the vacant units and the potential to undertake a more comprehensive redevelopment. We are delighted to be working with Chris Vaughan of Northstar Development Solutions on this development."

Donaldsons acted for Miller Developments.

Savills has recruited Graham Holder to join its building consultancy team as a director.

Graham was previously joint managing director of building consultancy at CBRE, and prior to that Hillier Parker, where he gained 28 years experience. He has acted on a variety of schemes including the cleaning and restoration of the West elevation at St Paul's Cathedral, and the development of new headquarters for British Energy and RAC. At Savills, Graham will work with the development teams from its London headquarters in Mayfair.

Graham Holder says: "I am greatly looking forward to being involved in this new development initiative at such a buoyant time in the property market."

Michael Pillow, head of building consultancy at Savills, adds: "Development is high on the agenda of Savills' group strategy, and Graham's broad range of experience will contribute to the teams? offer to existing and new clients."

CALA Properties has successfully obtained planning permission for a new speculative 23,292 sq ft grade A office building at Almondvale Business Park in Livingston.

The new £5 million building will form Phase Seven of development at Almondvale Business Park, CALA Properties' and Bank of Scotland Corporate's 9.2 acre urban office park in the centre of Livingston, and is expected to help create some 230 new jobs.

Work on the new air-conditioned building, which will feature 80 car parking spaces, is expected to start soon after the adjacent Phase Six is completed.

Phase Six is a 31,570 sq ft speculative grade A office building which will be completed in June 2007. Interest from prospective occupiers is already strong.

John Brophy, director of CALA Properties says: "Achieving planning for Phase Seven is a real mark of confidence in the long term future of the Livingston office market and gives us flexibility in our development programme.

"As Phase Six nears completion and prospective occupiers can start to see how it will look and tour round the development, enquiries and interest are growing.

"Land Securities' decision to increase the size of the adjacent shopping centre by a further 500,000 sq ft with the 'Elements' has certainly helped increase interest, as has the recent run of local office lettings which have helped emphasise Livingston's premier position as well located office destination."

CALA Properties expects to attract footloose occupiers looking for an easily accessible, value for money, building.

Situated next to more than 1.5 million sq ft of retail and leisure space in Livingston town centre, Almondvale Business Park is planned to provide 350,000 sq ft of high-quality office accommodation in ten phases. Current occupiers already include HSBC, HMIe, Quintiles, HM Revenue Customs, GE Harris, and Scottish Building Standards Agency.

CALA Properties' development at Almondvale Business Park is part of an on-going development programme at sites across Scotland, including GSO Business Park and at Peel Park in East Kilbride, Brandon Shopping Centre in Motherwell and Westside Plaza Shopping and Leisure complex in Edinburgh.

Sharon Drysdale joined Lindsays Commercial Property Team as an Associate on Monday 12 March 2007. Sharon's arrival again boosts a team which, in the past year, has seen the appointment of 3 associates, 1 senior associate, 1 professional support lawyer and 1 partner.

Sharon, previously based in the commercial property division of MacRoberts, brings a wide range of experience to Lindsays, having acted for clients in property development, leasing for landlords and tenants and the property aspects of company acquisitions.

Kenny Gray, head of Lindsays' Commercial Property Team commented, "Sharon brings a wealth of experience and skills to our existing team and we are delighted to have her on board".

The Definitive Guide to Retail and Leisure Parks 2007 has revealed that the proportion of retail parks with peak rents above £25 per sq ft (£269 per sq m) has increased to 20% from 17% in 2006 and the entry level for the Top 100 Retail Parks Rents has risen to £30. Furthermore, the research, which was conducted by Trevor Wood Associates in conjunction with Savills, also shows a wide variation in peak rents achieved on retail parks from £6 per sq ft to £95 per sq ft, compared to £5 per sq ft and £83.23 per q ft in 2006.

Fosse Park Shopping Park in Leicester, has the highest retail park rent at £95 per sq ft, followed by Brookfield Retail Park in Cheshunt, Hertfordshire, which has a peak rent of £75 per sq ft. In third place is Colney Fields Shopping Park in St, Albans, London with £65 per sq ft. Castlepoint in Bournemouth ranks fourth with £62.50 per sq ft.

In comparison to the increasing rents, the research shows that the quantity of vacant or available space has also risen over the last year from 7.6% in 2006 to a new peak vacancy rate of 8%. Over the last four years, the overall supply of warehousing floorspace has grown by 19%, and second-hand retail warehousing has increased by an excessive 83% with units remaining unoccupied from the closure of retailers such as Landmark, Tempo and World of Leather.

Trevor Wood of Trevor Wood Associates says: "Twenty of the top fifty retail park tenants have either reduced their retail park floorspace over the past year or shown nil growth, although I should add that sixteen other retailers have shown double digit growth. However, new entrants continue to appear and five of this year's top 30 retailers were not ranked five years ago."

Mat Oakley, head of commercial research at Savills, comments: "While we are seeing many retailers leaving the high street in favour of retail parks, where rents are more competitive, we are also witnessing existing large space occupiers at retail parks changing priorities in a bid to control rent bills. Many retailers are continuing to relocate, close down marginal stores and downsize large stores. In fact, 70% of the current demand at retail parks is for units of less than 12,000 sq ft, which has resulted in landlords finding it harder to let larger stores. However, we expect the vacancy rate to stay at its current level of 8% over the next 12 months."

The report highlights other influences to the sector, some of which include the following: In an attempt to increase appeal, the guide states, that the trend among larger retail parks to incorporate leisure facilities, such as cinemas and health and fitness centres, within the scheme has peaked. 32 retail parks, retail and leisure parks or shopping parks have now integrated a cinema, 26 have included a bowling alley or family entertainment centre and 57 have a health and fitness centre.

In terms of general retail park size, the research ranks Castlepoint in Bournemouth totalling 645,000 sq ft (59,920 sq m) in first place, Middlebrook Retail and Leisure Park, Bolton, totalling 634,014 sq ft (58,900 sq m), in second place and Fort Kinnaird, Edinburgh, totalling 576,409 sq ft (53,548 sq m), in third place. Retail World in Rotherham, totalling 560,425 sq ft (52,063 sq m) and Clifton Moor Centre (phases 1-3) in York, totalling 546,029 sq ft (50,726 sq m) are ranked in fourth and fifth place respectively.

According to the research, there is no change to the top 5 of the Top Retail Park Tenants, with B&Q;, Homebase, Currys, Matalan and MFI retaining positions from one to five respectively.

Elsewhere in the report, British Land was ranked first in both the Top 10 Investment Managers for Retail Parks and Top 10 Investment Managers for Retail Warehousing. Standard Life, Morley Fund Management, Land Securities and Prudential Property Investment Managers were also featured in the top five of both categories.

Plans have been unveiled for one of Glasgow's largest new office developments in the last five years in a major boost to the city's International Financial Services District.

Gladedale Capital, the UK commercial and mixed use development company, plans a new £150 million development comprising three new office buildings on Glasgow?s Broomielaw which will provide 389,000 sq. ft of Grade A office space.

The new development will be created, pending planning approval, on a two acre site fronting on to the River Clyde and minutes from Glasgow Central Station. It's anticipated that the new office buildings, once complete, could support in excess of 2500 jobs.

The plans will increase the volume of Grade A space created in the International Financial Services District since 2001 by more than 30%, representing a significant addition to the city's office capacity and its ability to attract high quality new jobs and investment.

The three new office buildings have been designed by Make, one of the UK's foremost architectural firms whose founders Ken Shuttleworth and Ewan Anderson were behind the iconic Swiss Re Building in the City of London, known as the Gherkin, and the Commerzbank Tower in Frankfurt.

They will be constructed along the eastern edge of the site, rising from 11 to 15 storeys and will feature floorplates extending to circa 13,000 sq. ft with flexibility to allow subdivision. The proposals incorporate a full basement car park and landscaping fully integrated with Glasgow City Council's public realm initiative for the area.

The Broomielaw project will be the first major office scheme in Glasgow by Gladedale Capital, which is currently also building the most new office space in Edinburgh at the prestigious £400m Quartermile urban regeneration development and at Lochrin Square, which will deliver 450,000 sq. ft of Grade A provision between them.

Jim McIntyre, managing director of Gladedale Capital, said: "This development represents a major addition to Glasgow's office stock. It?s a striking new development, designed by one of the UK's leading architects, and will be a real asset to the city's growing International Financial Services District.

"It will ensure the continuing progress of the Broomielaw as a business district and contribute to the ongoing regeneration of the Clyde and Glasgow's city centre waterfront."

Commenting on the plans, Jim Watson of Scottish Enterprise Glasgow, who is also project director for the IFSD said: "This planned investment by Gladedale represents another massive boost for the on-going development of the IFSD.

"As we enter the second half of the project's life, this striking development is a valuable addition to the ever growing pipeline of high quality office space in Glasgow.

"Gladedale's development sets us well on the way to achieving our aspirations for 2 million sq ft of new Grade A development in the District by 2011."

The new buildings have been designed to ensure excellent pedestrian links between the waterfront and the city centre around Argyle Street.

The plans also envisage a mix of retail and leisure units at ground level and incorporate a new public space at the centre of the development extending to the waterfront, designed to draw people to the site and provide a new focus.

It's anticipated that construction work on the first building will begin on site early next year with a scheduled completion in 2009.

Building 1 will extend to 11 storeys with 124,000 sq. ft of office space and 2,500 sq. ft of retail space; Building 2 will be 13 storeys high incorporating 130,000 sq. ft of office space and 1,700 sq. ft of retail space; Building 3 will be 15 storeys high, providing 135,000 sq. ft of office space.

The development of the International Financial Services District has already lured over 13,000 jobs to the area over the past five years. Major financial industry players including JP Morgan, esure, Morgan Stanley, ACE Insurance and First Data Corporation have been attracted to the IFSD, while existing employers such as Barclays and Direct Line have expanded their operations.

Agents for Gladedale are DTZ and Montagu Evans.