Curtis Real Estate and LaSalle Investment Management have bought a 7-acre site on White Hart Lane in Tottenham, on which they plan to build London’s first speculative industrial development in several years. This demonstrates how confident they are about the future in London’s industrial commercial property.
Subject to planning approval, seven units, ranging from 10,000 sq ft-52,000 sq ft and totalling 143,000 sq ft, will be developed.
Curtis and LaSalle reportedly paid around £5m for the site, which was previously owned by electrical supplies company Bridisco, who went into administration in 2008.
Curtis Real Estate, Managing Director, Alan Curtis, said: ‘We expect this proposal to kick-start the return of shed development in London after several years of inactivity.’
Ben Wiley of Strutt & Parker, which advised LaSalle and Curtis Real Estate, added: ‘It has become clear that in key locations there is a very limited supply, with no pipeline development planned. When combined with unsatisfied requirements for new buildings, the market dynamics present the justification for new developments.’
Chris Fry, a Director of LaSalle Investment Management said: ‘A lack of development in the industrial sector in recent years means that there is a shortage of new space so now is the right time in the property cycle to acquire well located land for future development…We are confident that in partnership with Curtis Real Estate, our development of the Tottenham site will be attractive to potential tenants and will provide strong returns… The industrial sector has been starved of investment for a considerable period which is why developments such as this are well placed to meet an upswing in demand as the UK economy stabilises.’
Alan Curtis, added, ‘Despite the current economic slowdown there remains a healthy volume of unsatisfied industrial requirements for occupiers looking for new premises closer to central London and whose businesses need to remain within the North Circular.
Many commercial property developers will be keeping a close eye on this development. Should it be successful, we could see planning for many more industrial commercial property projects, across London.
