The Daily Mail General Trust (DMGT) has agreed the conditional sale of its Harmsworth Quays print works site to British Land. The sale of the 14.57 acre South East London site is expected to be sealed within weeks and British Land will take possession in 2013.
British Land is already involved in joint ventures in the area with the London Borough of Southwark so the acquisition of the Daily Mail site, situated at Canada Water, is in line with these interests. Mike Rayner, Director of Development at British Land, confirmed this, saying;
“The purchase of this large site adjoining our existing ownerships reinforces our confidence in the area and demonstrates our continued commitment to the wider Canada Water regeneration and Rotherhithe.
“We look forward to working together with the London Borough of Southwark and the local community to realise the full potential of this site.”
David Dutton of DGMT said Canada Water had been a good location for the print works which will relocate to Thurrock next year. He went on to say he was confident that British Land would deliver a development that would benefit the local community.
British Land is one of the largest Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) with current assets of £15.8 billion. Its commercial property portfolio is dominated by prime London retail properties which account for 61 per cent of its assets.
City and West End offices account for a further 34 per cent, which will rise to 40 per cent with the completion of the current developments British Land is involved in. This represents 7 million sq ft of high quality office space.
British Land says its priorities are sustainable development, enhancing biodiversity, managing commercial properties efficiently, exceeding customers’ expectations and focusing on local communities.
