Beacon lights up as near to calling ‘full house’
Monday, 1st March 2010
One of the largest business parks of its kind in central southern England is near to calling ‘full house’ on part of the £250m flagship development.
Fourteen of the 15 units have now been let or sold at The Beacon Centre, part of 20-acre Zone A on the 160-acre Solstice Park at Amesbury.
The Beacon Centre, at a gateway location to the park, comprises industrial/warehouse and trade counter units from 1,800 sq ft (167 sq m) to 3,750 sq ft (1,150 sq m).
The latest letting has been completed through Salisbury-based commercial property consultancy Myddelton & Major on behalf of Abbey Manor Group, a regional property developer based in Yeovil.
Myddelton & Major’s Philip Holford said: “From the point of view of developer Abbey Manor, we are near to calling ‘full house,’ with 14 out of the 15 units sold on to private investors or occupiers or leased out.
“The latest deals indicate renewed market confidence from business owners and investors as we emerge from the severest recession of its kind in living memory.”
He added: “The Beacon Centre is attracting inward investment and generating employment through expanding firms keen to be part of the competitive edge here and the superb road links.
“The arrival of milk giant Robert Wiseman Dairies, which has just built a regional distribution depot on Solar Way, has also boosted the local economy, reportedly creating 300 new jobs.
“This nine-acre facility, for which we also sold the plot, reinforces the reputation of the flagship Solstice Park as a thriving business hub for major players of national and international status.”
Five recent transactions have been handled by Myddelton & Major at The Beacon Centre, including one this month (FEB 1) and in January.
ProMedia, the trading name of Vesey Thompson Group, an expanding exhibition display specialist which employs 12 staff and is relocating 23 miles away from Marlborough, signed up to Unit 213 in the latest deal.
Building firm David Futcher has bought Unit 206. The company, with nine staff, is to relocate five miles away from near Salisbury.
Unit 204 was acquired by R&S Properties and has been leased to SG Systems UK (ShopGuard Systems), a market-leading provider of anti-theft solutions. Already on site, it required an extra unit from R&S Properties for expansion
Excalibur LPA, which supplies, designs and installs energy-saving equipment, bought Unit 207.
Motor garage company Express Motor Workshop has further leased Unit 209 to complement its existing business running from Unit 210.
Financial details of the five latest deals have not been disclosed.
The only available unit left for sale or rent, from the developer’s point of view, is Unit 208, which is 2,680 sq ft (249 sq m).
Myddelton & Major is quoting £214,000 freehold or an annual rent of £17,500 – equivalent to £6.63 a sq ft (£70.56 a sq m).
Three other units at The Beacon Centre, sold on to private investors, are available to lease, with Myddelton & Major acting for the freeholders.
The Beacon Centre also has two plots of land available for detached office and research and development buildings, of between 7,836 sq ft (727.8 sq m) and 10,000 sq ft (929 sq m).
A third, of 12,000 sq ft (114.8 sq m), was built for Tintometer, a world leader in colour measurement and water analysis.
Solstice Park itself comprises four self-contained zones – 20-acre industrial and distribution, 11-acre roadside and leisure fronting the A303 trunk road, a 20-acre office park and a 60-acre site (Zone D) for major users and headquarter facilities.
There is a resolution to grant consent at Zone D for two mega-distribution warehouses, totalling around one million sq ft.
Key occupiers at the park include Somerfield, Holiday Inn, Pizza Hut and KFC.
Solar Way, the access road for The Beacon Centre, was named by a youngster from Stonehenge School at Amesbury six years ago.
Myddelton & Major is the sole agent at Solstice Park for the Abbey Manor Group.
Author: Sarah
