Manchester Offices

[jrb]

MEN.

The strength of Manchester's powerhouse professional services sector could prove a key factor in the city's attempt to land the government's new Green Investment Bank, the man appointed to spearhead the campaign said today.

John Ashcroft, chief executive of pro.manchester, has been selected to lead the bid to bring the GIB to Manchester, in the face of competition from other cities such as Leeds, London, Liverpool, Bristol and Edinburgh.

Mr Ashcroft said the city's professionals would get a “phenomenal” boost if the Bank is brought to Manchester.

The bank is set to be launched next April, with £3bn of public funding to support low-carbon infrastructure projects.

Mr Ashcroft will work with Tim Newns, chief executive of inward investment agency MIDAS, and New Economy chief executive Mike Emmerich to rally support among the business community for the campaign.

Mr Ashcroft said the strength of Manchester's professional community is one of the key factors that will make the city's bid stand out over others.

The Manchester office of law firm Cobbetts is one of the private sector partners involved in the city's bid, due to the work it already does in the low-carbon carbon field.

But, with many other professional firms growing their presence in this area, Mr Ashcroft said the sector would benefit hugely from the GIB coming here.

An energy and low-carbon group has been established within pro.manchester, with representatives including Roger Clayson, of Addleshaw Goddard, Tom Bashford, of HSBC, Keith Davidson, head of environment and energy at Pannone, Jennifer Hazlehurst, of Deloitte, and Jason Gledhill, from Barclays Corporate.

Mr Ashcroft said :”The GIB will have £3bn to spearhead a major investment programme, so in terms of the work this could generate for the community, it could be phenomenal.

“We believe the success of the GIB is vital to the success of the transition to a low-carbon economy, which is so vital to the future of our children, our children's children and beyond. “We applaud the government’s commitment to a green future and we want the GIB to succeed. More importantly, we believe the best chance of success is here in Manchester.”

The idea of the GIB is to accelerate private sector investment in the UK's transition to a green economy. Government will fund it to the tune of £3bn until 2015, from which point it will raise its own money by borrowing from other lenders.

Mr Ashcroft has been nominated by Manchester city council chief executive Sir Howard Bernstein to lead the campaign.

Mr Ashcroft said: “A recent paper on the design on the GIB identified three key things that should determine where it is located.

“They were access to a strong business, financial and professional community, access to a talent pool and it being a cost effective location.

“What we know is that Manchester has the largest financial and professional community outside of London, which employs 250,000 people and is set to grow by 30 per cent over the next decade.

“Secondly, there are more than 100,000 students at our universities, meaning we have a large talent pool and, thirdly, we are a cost effective location.

“In terms of things like recruitment and occupancy costs and travel-to-work times, Manchester offers a cost effective location to underpin the strengths of the talent pool and the the financial and professional sector.”

[hulmeman2]

Originally Posted by jrb

PS. Has anyone still got that render of the the proposed office block for London & Scottish Bank site? Traweled SSC and the interweb, but I can't find it.

Don't know if anyone remembers it, but it was slightly curved and quite a nice shape. Certainly caused a bit of a stir when it was first posted.

Thanks.

Originally Posted by man med

London Scottish House development - we've seen a couple of designs for this plot now, doubt we will see anything big here for a few years now though

http://www.montageuk.com/projects/co...-scot-hse.html

Originally Posted by ferge

Do you mean this one? (I'm at a loss with the various schemes over the years). Seems to be something I threw together in years gone by as a quick photoshop.

Looks like we're gonna be disappointed:
http://menmedia.co.uk/manchestereven...-on-the-market

Walls Developments puts city centre London Scottish House on the market
November 26, 2011

London Scottish House, the former headquarters of London Scottish Bank, is being put on the market by Dublin-based owner Walls Developments.

The 50,000 sq ft building on Mount Street in the city centre is being offered to a buyer for refurbishment or redevelopment, albeit on a smaller scale than previously envisaged.

Options for the site include a new office block or an extension to double the existing size of the building.

The landmark building, currently occupied by Age Concern, is being sold by joint disposing agents WHR and CB Richard Ellis, which won a pitch involving six consultancies.

London Scottish House lies in the heart of the St Peter's Square regeneration zone.

It had previously been earmarked for a scheme of up to 260,000 sq ft. Mike Hawkins, of WHR, said: “We are now operating in a different economic climate and a scheme of this size is over-optimistic in the current market.

“There are potentially two scenarios: a complete refurbishment and extension of up to 100,000 sq ft, which could be brought to the market within 12-15 months, or a demolition and new-build scheme of between 160,000 and 180,000 sq ft.

“London Scottish House represents one of the most significant redevelopment sites within this area. With superb amenities and excellent transport links, this building has the potential to be one of Manchester's iconic landmarks.

“This is a rare opportunity for a forward-thinking fund or developer to acquire one of the most significant investments with a refurbishment or redevelopment opportunity in Manchester city centre, completing the renaissance of St Peter's Square and providing the business community with much-needed grade A office space.”

How this can be 'extended' by 100,000 ft2 is beyond my comprehension!

[iheartthenew]

It is proposed it could be extended TO 100,000 sqr ft from its existing 50,000 sq ft, only doubling, not tripling, its size. This could be done by filling in that missing corner (taking it to about 65,000 sq ft) then adding another 4 floors (at approx 10,000 sq ft each) if it was structurally possible. Probably easier to start again....

[flange]

City centre is hot spot, says Cushman & Wakefield

November 29, 2011

Surveyors suggest Manchester city centre's commercial property market is set for a bumper few months as cost-conscious businesses hunt for up to 2.75m sq ft of office floor space.

Cusman and Wakefield's Insight 500 research reveals that companies are scrutinising their real estate strategies to search for ways to use property they occupy more efficiently and to make cost savings.

However, property brokers say Manchester is well-placed with occupiers including law firm Pannone and Lloyds Bank looking at changing their city centre office space.

Last week healthcare giant BUPA confirmed that it had appointed Cusham & Wakefield to advise on a potential 140,000 sq ft office requirement.

The firm are currently based in Salford Quays.

According to the Cushman & Wakefield survey, more than a third (38 per cent) of companies intend to either reduce their property space.

A similar proportion (36 per cent) say they want to use it more efficiently.

Nearly four in ten (39 per cent) plan to sub-let their space in 2012.

One in four anticipate significant changes to their portfolio over the next three years, with the majority expecting to have a smaller number of properties by then.

Tony Bray, head of Manchester office at Cushman & Wakefield, said: “While UK businesses continue to grapple with a tough economic environment, Manchester is proving to be one of the best cities in which to operate and grow.

“The biggest factors driving real estate decision process are total property costs, availability of a skilled work force, accessibility to public transport and proximity of clients and markets.

“Manchester scores highly on all of these factors and consequently is able to retain existing as well as attracting new businesses to the region.

“With medium term lease expiries totaling 2.5 million sq ft due between 2014-2017, several high profile Manchester financial and professional businesses including Aviva, Lloyds Banking Group, and Pannone are undertaking property reviews as they look to consolidate or take advantage of more competitive lease terms.”

Bray says that companies are paying closer attention to the return on investment that real estate brings to the bottom-line and are placing greater focus on property’s strategic suitability.

Figures from DTZ suggest that the Manchester office market, while healthier than some regional centres, still has problems to confront.

Take-up this year is unlikely to be more than 710,000 sq ft, roughly half the figure for 2010.

http://menmedia.co.uk/manchestereven...an--wakefield-

[flange]

Bupa picks Cushwake for office search

29 Nov 2011, 10:39

Cushman & Wakefield has beaten off competition among Manchester office agents to win the Bupa instruction to find a new 140,000 sq ft northern headquarters.

Bupa has two leases on its current offices in the Anchorage and Harbour City, both in Salford Quays, which are due to expire in 2015.

Cushwake will consider all options, including renewing leases on the current space as well as moving to existing buildings or building a bespoke office. Cushwake is also letting agent on Peel Group's Media City UK, among the early frontrunners tipped by other agents to land the Bupa consolidation.

Tony Bray, head of the Manchester office of Cushman & wakefield, said in a statement: "Cushman & Wakefield has been appointed by Bupa to provide Real Estate Advice in relation to their Salford Quays portfolio. Bupa have been located in two main buildings on the Quays since the early 1990s and are now considering options ahead of current lease expires in 2015."

http://www.placenorthwest.co.uk/news...ce-search.html

[Cherguevara]

Cross posted from the city bashing thread, to shed some light on jrb's post at the top of this page.

Originally Posted by tomo90

Right Il explain what I meant had to rush off to work earlier,

I think this bank may be a catalyst for similar industries setting up in the city it is based in. Manchester and Leeds dont have trouble with this. Edinburgh might not be part of the UK soon so that would be silly. Im just going off Hesteline's report maybe that over exaggerated the whole thing. Who knows.

Looking at what the government have said:

Government Property Unit, will consider a number of criteria before taking a decision on the GIB’s location, including:

• Ability to fulfil the GIB’s mission: The GIB will be based in a location that best enables it to fulfil its mission through other players in the wider green and financial markets. In particular it will need to be in close proximity to the following groups:
– Private sector financiers: Including bank project finance teams, infrastructure funds, private equity houses, commercial lending banks and institutional investors. Close proximity will enable the GIB to encourage mobilisation of additional private sector capital.
– Project sponsors: Including the head offices of utilities, waste companies, large industrial companies and ‘green’ project developers.
– Specialist advisors: Including specialist legal advisors for project finance, commercial and technical advisors and asset service providers.
– Green thought leadership: To solicit third party advice on green priorities – e.g., NGOs, trade associations, government agencies.
– Government: To engage appropriately with Government on the impact of policy changes and future funding.

• Ease of access to the talent pool: It is imperative that the GIB’s location provides easy access to deep pools of talent with the necessary skills in financial services and ‘green’ expertise.

• Commercial costs: The major cost drivers are likely to include:
– Costs of recruiting financial services and other expert talent including professional advisors
– Building rental and infrastructure costs to host and support a small sized banking function (currently envisaged as a 50–100 employee operation).
– Costs of back office support, administration and maintenance.
– Travel costs (e.g., for staff travel involved in marketing, origination and due diligence).

Looks like outer London to me.

Having said that the co-op have been actively engaged with the process (as an existing investor in green projects, especially small and community ones) so depending on how the government see this developing the city could be in with a shot. If it's to fund big infrastructure though then I'd have though it'd be South East based, as that's where the large scale capital and international expertise is.

[LNGCats]

London or Edinburgh are the only realistic options in my opinion.

[jrb]

A bit long, but worth a read.

PNW.

DTZ panel seeks light amid gloom

2 Dec 2011, 10:04


It's that time of year again - annual reviews of the year gone and previews of the year ahead. Getting quickly into the spirit are the good folk at DTZ in Manchester. Ken Bishop, Caroline Baker, John Keyes and colleagues share their thoughts on 2011 and predictions for next year.




Ken Bishop, senior director of DTZ's office agency in Manchester, on the outlook for office development in Manchester: "As 2011 has seen the start of only one speculative office development in the North West - No 1 St Peter's Square in Manchester - it would not take much for 2012 to deliver an improvement. However, given the reality of the global economy, its impact on the property market and the general lack of finance, it is hard to foresee a significant increase. The majority of new development will have to be pre-let in part to enable the developer to finance the remaining, speculative, element. The lease from Salford Council on the Embankment is an example of the type of creative solution needed to enable development to proceed.

"The irony of course is that the lack of competition should give developers a stronger hand than they have had for some time. In theory this will drive rental growth and/or decrease the level of incentives for occupiers. Another consequence of the lack of new supply is that we will almost certainly see the return of pre-lettings, something that has been absent from the market for about five years. The first pre-let within this development cycle has just been achieved with KPMG taking part of Argent/GMPVF's No 1 St Peter's Square.

"We may also see more major refurbishments. Merepark has commenced work on The Department, the former Lewis's department store in Liverpool, which will provide 80,000 sq ft and work is taking place on Waterhouse, formerly 41 Spring Gardens, Manchester, which offers around 16,000 sq ft.

"In general, 2012 is likely to be similar to 2011, though perhaps with more positive prospects for the future."




John Keyes, director of corporate real estate consulting, offers his perspective on public sector property: "This year was supposed to be the year when the public sector responded to funding cuts, changed the way it delivered services and rationalised its property occupation. In practice, progress has been much slower than hoped for. Political opposition - for example to health sector reforms and to the re-organisation of university education - has created uncertainty and a 'wait and see approach' in many organisations. Inevitably, public bodies have spent time looking inwards, focusing on the implications of the cuts and managing internal reorganisations, rather than on the bigger questions of transforming service delivery and making property portfolios suitable for the new funding and policy environment.

"Expectations remain that property rationalisation can make a significant contribution to the delivery of savings. So, will 2012 be a year of delivery? The evidence is that many organisations are still looking inwards, something that could be compounded as they look at making further cuts, given the year-on-year nature of funding reductions within the spending round. In many cases, there is also the dilemma of accessing resources and expertise to effectively deliver change. Organisations may have lost some of their most senior and experienced people through redundancies. They face a challenging agenda of making radical service and organisational changes. The expertise often exists in the private sector, but justifying budgets for external consultancy support is a challenge in a climate of redundancy and service closure.

"Notwithstanding these challenges, 2012 will need to be a year when the property efficiency agenda starts to deliver. We need to see the emergence of some pioneering organisations that grasp the new agenda and show others the way."




Caroline Baker, development consulting director, on 2011 and the year ahead for local authorities in the North West: "2011 has been one of the most difficult years on record for local authorities, set within the context of ongoing fiscal crisis at a regional, national and Europe-wide level, resulting in limited development in the North of England in particular. Significant cuts in public sector spending have resulted in many local authority officers being made redundant including some very experienced people whose local knowledge is invaluable. This has been compounded by significant changes, and in the interim uncertainly, in the planning policy framework and other legislation. New-sub regional organisations in the form of the LEPs are beginning to influence their areas but it is only now that they are starting to get some power and money to make a difference.

"So at the close of 2011 we have greater clarity and one thing is for certain - the Government is not going to prescribe actions and is looking to local areas to come up with their own solutions!

"In 2012 local authorities will need to become more proactive if they want to see development happening outside of the region's prime locations. They will need to consider carefully how they can best use their resources - land, borrowing potential, funding mechanisms such as the Community Infrastructure Levy and experience - to collaborate with the banks, investors and developers as well as public sector partners in order to respond to the challenges and, importantly, opportunities in their areas. The old development models are no longer working and new flexible models must be developed for specific opportunities. Local authorities need to determine which their priority projects are and how they can collaborate with partners to deliver then going forward."




Gino D'Anna, associate director of DTZ's professional advisory services team, on the situation for corporate occupiers in the North West in 2011 and into 2012: "Despite the current economic uncertainty and fragile consumer confidence arising from the eurozone debt crisis, we expect 2012 to see the opportunities for occupiers to take advantage of recent market conditions and trade up to new superior premises, or renegotiate preferential terms on their existing premises, to become more difficult in several markets throughout the North West.

"For example, in the industrial and logistics sector DTZ research reveals that after a surge of activity in Q3, there currently remain only four buildings in the North West region able to satisfy occupier requirements in excess of 150,000 sq ft.

"Some 2m sq ft of industrial space was let in Q3. This means that of all the available space in the region only 7.5% of the supply is of Grade A quality. This is the second lowest proportion in the UK, positioning the North West behind Wales, and supports our view that tenant-friendly terms on new industrial units will be harder to negotiate as we progress through 2012. Accordingly we also predict that of all the main UK markets, the Manchester industrial market will see the highest rental growth for the period 2011-15, predicted at 2.5% a year.

"Similar sentiments are replicated in the central Manchester Grade A office market with little or no new developments expected to come online throughout 2012."




Russell Hefferan, associate director of valuation for DTZ in Manchester, on the outlook for banks: "2011 is panning out to be another tough year in the commercial property market, with some sectors holding up better than others. Typically rental levels have remained flat and there has been a softening of yields on secondary and tertiary stock over the latter part of 2011 in response to increased economic uncertainty. The retail sector continues to suffer the most as consumer confidence remains weak, retail sales have declined and the number of void units generally remains high in weaker locations. The lack of speculative development in the industrial and office sectors has helped to maintain rental levels, offsetting the limited level of demand from tenants.

"Banks continue to take a very cautious approach on short-term income and vacant accommodation. However, there has been increased activity from lenders for well secured investments due to the emergence of new entrants, such as Virgin Money and insurance companies such as Legal and General, Aviva and Canada Life increasing their lending appetite. Mezzanine finance providers have provided further options for borrowers on prime stock.

"With continued weak occupier markets, rising unemployment and further global uncertainty we would expect the yield gap between prime and anything else to continue to widen in 2012. Prime rents are likely to remain flat with potential further falls in secondary and tertiary markets in retail, office and industrial. We expect supermarkets, medical centres and data centres to continue to outperform the rest of the market in 2012."




Tony O'Keefe, director of industrial and logistics, on North West predictions for 2012: "In the forthcoming Olympic year, the winner's podium separates the best from the 'also rans' and as in athletics this stark contrast in fortunes will be played out in the industrial market throughout 2012.

"Gold - As the supply of Grade A accommodation is at historic lows, 'oven ready' prime industrial sites will capitalise from a reinvigorated design and build market. For example UK Coal's Cutacre site near Bolton, 212 acres, will establish itself as the North West location of choice and dominate big shed take-up in the Manchester hinterland over the coming years, with other sites such as National Grid's Voltage Park in Partington, 67 acres, also benefiting.

"Silver - Better quality second hand space will capitalise on Grade A shortages as the supply imbalance forces occupiers to compromise their requirements and consider buildings throughout the quality strata. Occupier incentives and rents are expected to harden for better quality accommodation.

"Bronze - As continued economic uncertainty prevails, exacerbated by the European malaise, occupational demand will be muted and there will be an increasing polarisation in the market place between prime and non-prime accommodation."

[jrb]

BDNW.

SERVICED office provider i2 Office has taken two floors of space at the Chancery Place scheme in Manchester city centre.

The Milton Keynes-based company will open its first North West base within the Grade A building, opening a 15,000 sq ft business centre.
Fit-out of the new centre is already underway and an official opening is planned for early 2012.

Philip Grace, CEO of i2 Office, said: “i2 Office has already expanded its network North and South, from Glasgow to Greenwich, and we are delighted to be adding Manchester to our growing number of centres.

"Manchester is a major business hub for the north of England and our new centre will be perfectly located in the heart of the city’s business centre."

Chancery Place is owned by Irish property company Alanis Capital. DTZ acted for i2 Office and Jones Lang LaSalle acted for Alanis Capital.

[flange]

Jackson House bags year’s largest letting in Sale and Altrincham

6th December 2011

By Joanne Birtwistle - Deputy Editor, North West

SMOOTH Financial Consultants has taken 14,242 sq ft of office space at Jackson House in Sale, making it 2011’s largest letting in the Sale and Altrincham area.

The debt management consultancy has taken half of the fourth floor on a five year lease with property investment and development company Commercial Estates Group.

Robert Jones, financial director at Smooth Financial, said that the company’s recent, rapid growth led to the need to move.

He said: “We are a local company, built from the ground up here in South Manchester so moving out of the region was never a consideration. We endeavoured to find the perfect local property and Jackson House was the ideal choice.

“The new open plan space incorporates our different divisions including a training academy suite, breakout rooms and communal areas for staff to socialise and relax.”

Other occupiers in the building include IBM, Chep UK and AA Projects Construction Consultants. Savills and Canning O’Neill are joint agents on the scheme.

http://www.thebusinessdesk.com/northwest/news

[Marksy_1]

http://www.insidermedia.com/insider/...nvestment-bank

Preferred locations revealed for Green Investment Bank
Last updated: 7th Dec 2011 at 09:04am | |
The team bidding to bring the Green Investment Bank to Manchester has revealed a shortlist of ten preferred locations around the city.

The shortlist features three buildings at Allied London's Spinningfields site including Tower 12, 3 Hardman Square and a yet to be constructed new building at the scheme.

Also shortlisted is Ask's First Street development; Bruntwood's City Tower, 1 New York Street and 1 Portland Street; The Co-Operative Group's NOMA 53; and Argent's Hive scheme in the Northern Quarter and 1 St Peter’s Square.

John Ashcroft, the Pro Manchester chief executive who is leading the city's bid, said: "We’re looking forward to furthering our conversations with developers.

"Manchester has a proven track record in its ability to do cross private and public sector deals. It is testament to the fact that our city is united by the desire to achieve the national vision for a low carbon economy."

The government will launch the Green Investment Bank next April with £3bn of public funding to back low-carbon infrastructure projects. Other cities vying to host the institution include Liverpool, Edinburgh, Leeds and Bristol.

[markydeedrop]

8 Dec 2011, 08:53


East Manchester media centre The Sharp Project has signed nine new tenants taking the total to 50.

Management at the centre, led by Sue Woodward, see this as an important milestone with 75% of the office units now let.

The building, a former Sharp Electronics warehouse on Oldham Road, has 66 office units covering 31,000 sq ft. Of these 26 are made from converted shipping containers.

New occupiers include The Zood, Made in Manchester - which has moved from Peel's Pie Factory - Digital Cools, Social Surf Online, Will Yapp, ELP (Elstree Light and Power), Dig Marketing, Paramount Media and Vibe Republic.

There is now a waiting list for the shipping containers which cost £50 a week. Office space start at £16.50/sq ft, including £6 of service charges, rising to £18.50.

Dig Marketing founder Tim Bilsborough formed the company three months ago with business partner Gabrielle O'Hare.

He said: "Having such a diverse range of digital companies literally outside our door is fantastic and made our decision to move here an easy one. We love the niche entrepreneurial spirit that has been created and want to pull on the resources right here all under this roof and offer our clients a truly unique service.

"We're in the business of selling tailored ideas to companies, particularly in the retail sector, and we know we can find people within the building that can make the ideas happen."

The Sharp Project's general manager Rose Marley said: "This clearly demonstrates that the digital and creative media sector is flourishing here in the North West despite the current economic downturn. There has never been a more exciting time to work in this field with so many opportunities available to small digital businesses and young start-ups."

The 250,000 sq ft centre was established in 2009 with £16.5m from Manchester City Council, the European Regional Development Fund and the North West Development Agency. Woodward and her team have spent the past three years converting the space which also has three sound stages, a recording studio and an area for a planned data centre.

Eddie Smith, chief executive for New East Manchester which has overseen the centre on behalf of landlords Manchester City Council, said: "We've delivered a fantastic environment for young digital start-ups and the amount of interest in our facilities is testament to this. Having reached a 75% occupancy rate on the office units is great news."

http://www.placenorthwest.co.uk/news...occupancy.html

[flange]

New office redevelopment next to Piccadilly Station.

Proposed Specification

Indigo can be refurbished to an occupiers specific requirements

Illustrative Specification

• Grade A specification
• Integrated LG7 lighting
• Suspended ceilings
• Stunning reception area with high quality finishes
• High speed passenger lifts
• DDA compliant
• Air conditioning / cooling
• Self -contained floors including wc / kitchen facilities
• Internal street and atrium
• Option of two storey extension to current building

Due for occupation in Autumn 2012. http://indigomanchester.com/index.html

[jrb]

BDNW.

SIEMENS has shortlisted four developers to regenerate its iconic Princess Parkway site in south Manchester.

The firm, which recently gained cash from the Regional Growth Fund to help build a new Green Technology base at its Manchester campus, has shortlisted local property groups Bruntwood and The Emerson Group as well as Kier and Wrenbridge (with Palmer Capital and Vinci) to draw up plans for the 20 acre campus.

It said that a preferred developer is likely to be picked by spring 2012.

Siemens employs 800 people on the site and has plans to increase this to 1,200 people in three years via the development of offshore wind power transmission technologies. The investment and job creation is due to national and international investments in green infrastructure.

The mixed-use scheme will be anchored by a new 100,000 sq ft office building for use by Siemens. The in situ, Sir William Siemens House, will be refurbished and the remainder of the site will be developed in phases to provide new office, hotel and residential accommodation.

Adam White, associate director at Jones Lang LaSalle, which is advising Siemens, said: "The shortlisted parties have all displayed strong delivery credentials and alongside Siemens’ globally recognised and market leading brand, we are confident that we will be able to deliver a scheme of exemplar status."

[flange]

Render from Place North West. http://www.placenorthwest.co.uk/news...velopment.html

[flange]

Mystery occupier closes in on Manchester office deals

22nd Dec 2011

An as yet unnamed organisation is primed to takes leases on ten separate Manchester office spaces, Insider has learnt. Manchester agency practice Edwards & Co has been appointed to find the deals.

Andrew Timms, partner at the King Street-based firm, told Insider: "Edwards & Co has been appointed by an unnamed global organisation, with a grade A covenant, which is looking at making a significant investment in the local community.

"The organisation is looking for a minimum of ten separate office locations in Manchester city centre and Salford Quays and all premises are to be open before the end of 2012."

Timms told Insider that Sheila Bird Group has been appointed as interior designer and project co-ordinator and that Turner Parkinson has been instructed as legal adviser, showing that the client is keen to work with advisers specifically identified with Manchester.

Insider understands that terms have been agreed on four of the ten locations. The requirements are for between 4,000 sq ft and 9,000 sq ft, with the majority being for between 5,000 sq ft and 6,000 sq ft.

The deal will come as a shot in the arm for a city centre market that has had a sluggish year following an unexpected boom year in 2010, when the Co-operative Group’s 300,000 sq ft-plus relocation boosted office take-up to 1.3 million sq ft.

In October, the Manchester Office Agents' Forum said city centre take-up was 156,803 sq ft in the third quarter of the year, meaning a total for the first nine months of the year of 458,302 sq ft - compared to an average for the same period in the past five years of 688,500 sq ft.

The most notable lettings during the third quarter were LateRooms taking a further 11,757 sq ft at Peninsula, Outsourcery taking 7,792 sq ft at The Avenue in Spinningfields and a 25,000 sq ft-plus disposal to the Iraqi Consulate at 1 Norfolk Street.

http://www.insidermedia.com/insider/...als/index.html

[jrb]

Strange decision.

The most active Regional office market and they're bailing out. Perhaps they can't get a foothold?

BDNW.

BNP Paribas Real Estate this week outlined proposals to shut its Manchester and Cardiff offices, according to PropertyWeek.com.

Staff were informed of the proposal to close the two offices this week. In total the closures would see the removal of between 15 and 20 positions.

A closure would be seen as a further blow to the regional property market, with large international firms – both investors and service providers – preferring to focus on Central London and the South East.

It is understood that there are no proposals to close any other regional offices. BNP Paribas Real Estate also has regional offices in Southampton, Bristol, Birmingham, Sheffield, Leeds, Newcastle and Edinburgh.

The move is part of BNP Paribas Real Estate’s plans to restructure its UK business, revealed last week. This will see it focus on profitable businesses such as Central London, and also move away from businesses that are long-term loss-making.

The restructuring proposals currently being put forward could lead to the redundancy of 70 positions.

A spokeswoman for the company said of the restructuring proposals: “BNP Paribas Real Estate can confirm that it is proposing to remove approximately 70 roles in the UK,” the spokeswoman said.

“The proposal is to restructure the business in order to continue to provide the best service to clients. The company will continue to invest in areas in which it can provide a sustainable service to meet the needs of its clients.

“This reorganisation is part of a strategy developed by the board of BNP Paribas Real Estate UK. It is not a decision made by the parent company, BNP Paribas, in the framework of its previously announced adaptation plan to the new regulatory environment.”

BNP Paribas Real Estate made earnings before interest and tax of £2.9m in 2010, according to Property Week’s latest agency survey, ranking it 12th in the UK, from revenue of £63m. This compared to EBIT of £3.2m from £63m of revenue in 2009. On an overall basis, the UK accounted for 12% of the firm’s EUR618m revenue in 2010.

The company went into the summer in a seemingly bullish position, having tabled a deal that would have seen it buy struggling rival DTZ from the listed company’s majority shareholder, Saint Georges Participations, with a price of 60p a share mooted.

But while talks on a takeover were initiated, no formal proposal was made, and after five months it was announced that DTZ would put itself up for sale, a process which resulted in its eventual takeover by Australian services firm UGL in a deal that saw shareholders receive nothing.

[LNGCats]

Not really that strange.

Most banks are retrenching back to their core businesses and getting out of any markets that are not low risk, profitable and core to their long term business plans.

The other offices will go over the next few years, mark my words.

[jrb]

BDNW.

ORCHARD Street Investment Management has sold the Belvedere building at Booth St in Manchester on behalf of client Railway Pension Fund Nominees to German fund manager Deka Immobilien.

The deal for the Grade A, 104,000 sq ft building was concluded last month. Details on the price and the yield paid for the building were undisclosed.

The £41.5m Belvedere building was completed in February 2009 by contractor Wilson Bowden after the commercial property market had already begun its downturn. However, the bulk of the building it has been let successfully, with five of the eight floors having been completely filled and only the first floor remaining vacant.

Tenants include insurance broker Marsh, risk manager Towers Watson, investment bank Altium, debt purchaser Arrow Global and agents CBRE.

Deka bought the building on behalf of its WestInvest ImmoValue fund. It was advised on the deal by CBRE.

[hussla]

Would be really interested to see what the yield is on this fairly new building in the current climate,shame it is undisclosed.