Planning go ahead for Harlequin Office Park, Emersons Green
28 March 2008
The units will be for sale or to let
Shepherd Developments and Bell Hammer have announced plans to bring forward development of their 8 acre site in Bristol’s northern fringe, following their recent planning approval.
The site known as Harlequin Office Park (formerly Viceroy Gate) is at the gateway to Emersons Green, close to the city’s new science park. The proposed development will comprise an office park of approximately 130,000 ft² set within a high quality landscaped environment.
A detailed planning consent has recently been granted for development of Phase 1 and work is expected to start shortly. The start of this major new speculative development is being seen as a solid vote of confidence in Bristol’s out-of-town office market.
Richard Whitehouse, director of Shepherd Developments said: “We are an established successful and ambitious nationwide developer with a substantial portfolio of high quality office and industrial schemes.
“Our current UK portfolio is in excess of £325 million and we expect to be on site this year with over 300,000 ft² of office space across the UK. We had been seeking to expand these activities into the South West and are delighted to be bringing forward our first scheme in the area for many years”.
Phase 1 will be developed on a speculative basis comprising of three buildings on a prominent corner site fronting the Avon Ring Road. The buildings will vary in size from 10,000 ft² to 26,000 ft² and are scheduled for completion next year.
Joint agents for the scheme are King Sturge and DTZ.
“This is a fantastic opportunity to launch a brand new office development as existing business parks in north Bristol are reaching 100 per cent occupation. Harlequin Office Park is in an excellent location close to the M32, the M4/M5 interchange and the Emersons Green retail village centre,” said Hannah Field, from the office agency team at King Sturge in Bristol.
She said the development would comprise two and three-storey buildings with considerably higher than average car parking and high quality landscaping. The units will be for sale or to let as a whole or floor-by-floor depending on demand.
“This speculative development shows a lot of confidence in the out-of-town market, where occupier take-up last year outstripped the 10-year average”, added Hannah Field.
