As consumers continue to fuel the retail industry’s recovery by upping their spending, high streets are once more beginning to look at how they can capitalise on the economic recovery to entice consumers back into town centres. Many are choosing to do this by entering the running for the Great British High Street title, with the... Read More
Hermes Real Estate has this week concluded the sale of its leisure asset on Stoke’s Festival Park to the Valad European Diversified Fund for £14.5 million. The new owner has gained a fully let 130,000 sq ft property within the larger Festival Park development. The 1988 two storey building is home to a ten screen Odeon multiplex... Read More
British Land has confirmed the letting of 36,000 sq ft of retail space at its Doncaster retail park. Both Next and Marks & Spencer Simply Food have agreed terms for units on the Wheatley Retail Park, joining retailers such as TK Maxx, Sports Direct and Boots. British Land hopes that these new tenancies will broaden the variety on offer at... Read More
Legal and General Property has confirmed its purchase of One Piccadilly Gardens in Manchester. The Grade A office building was sold for £75m and has tenants including Allianz Cornhill Insurance, Pizza Express, Caffe Nero and Pret a Manger contributing to a rental income of £4.3m per year. The vendor, Europa Capital, acquired the six-floor... Read More
Peel Ports has confirmed it is hoping to attract a single one-million square foot occupier to its planned logistics base on the banks of the Manchester Ship Canal. The 75-acre facility is being constructed on the site of the former Bridgewater paper mill at Ellesmere Port and would offer excellent transport connections to road, rail,... Read More
For some time now, manufacturers have expressed fears that a lack of skilled workers could negatively impact growth within the sector and lead to a reduction in expansion. Now, it appears that a similar issue is facing the service sector which according to the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) has seen a notable slowdown in the... Read More
The agents appointed to oversee the sale of the Gherkin are to embark on a global tour to meet the leading bidders for the City of London landmark, which entered administration in April. It is reported that over 200 potential bidders have emerged for the property which is on the market for the second occasion in its ten year history,... Read More
Retailers and business leaders in a Northern Ireland city are demanding a judicial review of a decision to allow a superstore less than two miles from a thriving high street. Newry Chamber of Commerce and Trade had pressed for a public inquiry into Hill Partnership's plans for a multi-million development just outside the city at... Read More
A multi-million pound plan to transform a former NATO airbase into a business campus could create as many as 8,000 new jobs, its developer has claimed. Urban and Civic, owners of the disused RAF and USAF airfield at Alconbury has already received outline permission for its 70-acre scheme and has just submitted a detailed application... Read More
A state-of-the-art project to make Teesside one of country’s “digital business capitals” is being extended after receiving more than £4m in British and European grants. The Boho Five building at Middlehaven is the latest addition to Middlesbrough’s DigitalCityBusiness (DCB) development and is being jointly financed by money... Read More
Less than 10 months before the Open Championship returns to the “Home of Golf” one of St Andrews’ most prestigious hotels has changed hands for more than £32m. Earlier this year the 209-room Fairmont Hotel was offered for sale at £37m with owners SABD Holdings (UK), a subsidiary of American private equity firm ARES, wanting to... Read More
A £2.5m local authority sponsored grant has kick-started the construction of a 110-acre Yorkshire distribution and manufacturing development. Leeds City Council brokered the financing deal — with cash from the Government’s Building Foundations for Growth programme — to allow ground preparation work to start this October on Muse... Read More
A German investment fund has paid £74m for Auckland's landmark Lumley Centre office block in what is claimed to be New Zealand’s biggest commercial deal for more than six years. One of only five premium office towers in the North Island city, the Shortland Street building was sold by Australian-based Dexus Property Group after what... Read More
The Selfridges store on Oxford Street in London has become a landmark with its window displays a major factor in its appeal. Now, its sister store in Birmingham is aiming to emulate this distinguishing aspect, having installed curved glass displays at the main entrances from the Bullring shopping centre. Measuring 3.5 metres tall by 8... Read More
The City of Cape Town has announced that it is considering offering the Desmond & Leah Tutu Legacy Foundation a long-term lease on The Granary. The building, which was built in 1812, is one of the oldest and most important historical structures in the East City Precinct. The proposal to lease the building will be put to council for... Read More
A surge in west coast leasing by high-tech companies looks set to make San Francisco the most expensive US office location. According to brokers CBRE, it will be the first time in more than a decade that Manhattan has lost its number one spot as America’s commercial capital. The cost of opening an office in San Francisco is now... Read More
Although consumers are starting to spend once more, some retailers are continuing to struggle to achieve targets and free themselves of debt. One such retailer is upmarket maternity, pram and babywear specialist Mamas & Papas, which has now announced it will attempt to cut its rental burden through a controversial Company Voluntary... Read More
Birmingham landmark Alpha Tower has been handed Grade II listed building status by English Heritage. The award was granted in recognition of the skyscraper’s status as “one of the most aesthetically successful" office buildings in the city. According to English Heritage “Its design successfully combined several ideas into a... Read More
Edinburgh is one of the UK’s most popular tourist destinations, with thousands of visitors flocking to the city every year. Yet while the city centre remains attractive for tourists and residents alike, retailers in the East End have voiced concerns over the area’s general state of disrepair – triggering a £100 million investment into... Read More
DTZ has published research revealing the top three most attractive commercial property markets for prime investment. The list is based on comparative property prices for each city in each of three markets: industrial, retail, and office. It lists the ones most likely to provide the best returns for investors who are looking to get into... Read More
A group of commercial property experts based in Kent has called for businesses to invest in new projects to address a shortage of supply which could threaten economic recovery. According to the Kent Developers Group, the recent UK Commercial Market Survey by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) has thrown into sharp... Read More
With commercial property demand in prime London locations running high, retailers and restaurateurs are being forced to look towards upcoming areas in order to expand their businesses. This has seen celebrity chef Jamie Oliver gain planning permission to open a flagship Jamie’s Italian restaurant in Victoria – however, this restaurant... Read More
