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Some good news. it looks like the old Council offices at Cargo Fleet are finally getting redeveloped after years of being empty
£1.5m Cargo Fleet building redevelopment to start
Oct 1 2010 Evening Gazette
PLANS to redevelop a landmark office building in Middlesbrough are back on track.
A £1.5m refurbishment of the Edwardian Cargo Fleet building gets underway on Monday - and owners Python Properties are hoping the project can kickstart the regeneration of the surrounding area.
The derelict three-storey building - formerly the headquarters of British Steel Teesside, followed by Redcar and Cleveland Council - will be restored to its former glory.
Top-quality office and business space will sit alongside a heritage centre, built in conjunction with Teesside University, displaying the area’s proud ironworks, steelmaking and ship-building history.
Python Properties first mooted the refurbishment plans in 2008, but bank funding was pulled when the recession hit.
“It’s taken nearly two years to get the project going again,” said Python Properties partner, Peter Broome, “but now we’re planning to open the doors by next March.
“The building is a well-known industrial landmark. It’s seen as a beacon development, which will, in our experience, have a knock-on effect of levering funding for other projects in the area. We’ve already had interest from businesses that want to take space.
“Steel making has always been at the heart of the region. The building has so much history we hope we’re in some way paying respect to our heritage.”
Python Properties, assisted by Tees Valley Unlimited, has secured a £400,000 grant from the Single Programme, awarded by One North East and matched with commercial funding from Santander Bank. The developer will also invest up to £750,000 in the project. Richard Buckley, director of delivery at Tees Valley Unlimited, said: “Cargo Fleet is one of Middlesbrough’s most recognisable buildings and I’m certain Python Properties will restore it to its former glory. The building is a key piece of the regeneration jigsaw across the town.”
Python Properties has successfully regenerated five major buildings in the North - the Royal Middlehaven House and The Cooperative Building, both in Middleborough, Maxwell’s Corner and The Town House in Stockton and Bank Quay House in Warrington.
Python Properties partner Martin Johnson, whose father worked in the building when it was owned by British Steel in the late 1960s, said: “Cargo Fleet, completely restored, will be a superb place to work and do business.”
The building was originally built by Cargo Fleet Iron Company in 1916.

£1.5m Cargo Fleet building redevelopment to start
Oct 1 2010 Evening Gazette
PLANS to redevelop a landmark office building in Middlesbrough are back on track.
A £1.5m refurbishment of the Edwardian Cargo Fleet building gets underway on Monday - and owners Python Properties are hoping the project can kickstart the regeneration of the surrounding area.
The derelict three-storey building - formerly the headquarters of British Steel Teesside, followed by Redcar and Cleveland Council - will be restored to its former glory.
Top-quality office and business space will sit alongside a heritage centre, built in conjunction with Teesside University, displaying the area’s proud ironworks, steelmaking and ship-building history.
Python Properties first mooted the refurbishment plans in 2008, but bank funding was pulled when the recession hit.
“It’s taken nearly two years to get the project going again,” said Python Properties partner, Peter Broome, “but now we’re planning to open the doors by next March.
“The building is a well-known industrial landmark. It’s seen as a beacon development, which will, in our experience, have a knock-on effect of levering funding for other projects in the area. We’ve already had interest from businesses that want to take space.
“Steel making has always been at the heart of the region. The building has so much history we hope we’re in some way paying respect to our heritage.”
Python Properties, assisted by Tees Valley Unlimited, has secured a £400,000 grant from the Single Programme, awarded by One North East and matched with commercial funding from Santander Bank. The developer will also invest up to £750,000 in the project. Richard Buckley, director of delivery at Tees Valley Unlimited, said: “Cargo Fleet is one of Middlesbrough’s most recognisable buildings and I’m certain Python Properties will restore it to its former glory. The building is a key piece of the regeneration jigsaw across the town.”
Python Properties has successfully regenerated five major buildings in the North - the Royal Middlehaven House and The Cooperative Building, both in Middleborough, Maxwell’s Corner and The Town House in Stockton and Bank Quay House in Warrington.
Python Properties partner Martin Johnson, whose father worked in the building when it was owned by British Steel in the late 1960s, said: “Cargo Fleet, completely restored, will be a superb place to work and do business.”
The building was originally built by Cargo Fleet Iron Company in 1916.