A Positive View

A combative view on the Midlands out of town office market has been advanced by a Solihull based developer. Barteak Developments based its view on the high level of interest in its Avon House development in Shirley, 75% of which is now let in the 2,415 sq.metres (26,000 sq.ft.) building. Barteak’s Julian King said: “As far as we are concerned the market for what we consider to be out of town property is very much alive and well. We are continuing to see high levels of interest, particularly from the private sector.” In Solihull, a recent letting at Managed Serviced Offices’ (MSO) Cranmore Place scheme means it is 60% let. MSO’s Karen Costello said: “We have 140 workstations, suitable for 2 to 140 people with offices let on an all inclusive basis for as little as £49 a month, plus VAT.”

The landlord is Associated Independent Stores (AIS) which has a three year agreement with MSO to run a business centre within the building. John Batsford of Bigwood acts for AIS. He said: “This will be a welcome additional feature within the M42 corridor.” Business centres are a growing feature of the office scene, particularly in tough economic times such as now. In Walsall, a new business centre in the refurbished Old Foundry, in the Caldmore area, has opened offering units up to 743 sq.metres (8,000 sq.ft.) in the 200 year old building.

While individual lettings may not be large, there are plenty of them as companies expand and foreign firms arrive in the UK. For example, PXP West Midlands had three small deals at its Element Court on the Hilton Business Park, Wolverhampton, one of which was to a German company, Netzsch Geratebau, which specialises in high precision instruments. Clearly, Opus Land also takes a bullish view of the out of town market and has received consent to almost double the amount of office space at its Opus 40 Business Park in Warwick. This will bring an additional 24,154 sq.metres (260,000 sq.ft.) in four buildings ranging in size up to 7,432 sq.metres (80,000 sq.ft.). When the 35 acre park is completed, it will have 52,024 sq.metres (560,000 sq.ft.) of space. It is being marketed by Bromwich Hardy and GVA Grimley.

The Midlands Commercial Property Register

The Midlands Commercial Property Register is a leading UK business property publication from Martin Austen Publishing. The aim of the publication is to offer a simple and effective means of finding Offices Space, Serviced Offices and Commercial Property in the Midlands . You can also find the latest commercial property news for the Midlands.