GBR Phoenix Beard, now part of international real estate advisor Savills, has advised  Canada Life Investments on the leasing of office space at Cathedral Place in Birmingham city centre to Oxygen Finance Ltd. The firm has agreed a new five-year lease for the property’s 2,035 sq ft (189 sq m) fourth floor, which features modern office space behind a period façade, and will pay a rent of £48,840 per annum.  The landlord has recently carried out extensive improvement works throughout the building including a reception refurbishment and addition of Caffe Nero on the ground floor, with further plans to covert the basement in to cycle storage space and shower facilities. Located on the corner of Temple Row West and Waterloo Street, Cathedral Place sits within Birmingham’s prime office district and overlooks St Philip’s Cathedral.  The property has attracted a number of high profile occupiers including global insurance firm Markel, Springboard Corporate Finance and recruitment firm Greenwell Gleeson. Joe Shorney, surveyor in the offices team at Savills, comments: “We are pleased to have secured this deal with Oxygen Finance, which further underlines the reputation of Cathedral Place as a destination for leading global firms.  There is now just one floor of available space remaining and we expect high levels of occupier interest.” Knight Frank represented Oxygen Finance Ltd.  GBR Phoenix Beard acted jointly with Cushman & Wakefield. Source link

A packed room and competitive pricing saw over £3.7million raised and 97% sold at the latest Savills regional auction in Nottingham, which took place at the city’s racecourse on Wednesday 23rd March 2016. Highlights included: – The sale of the former Peacock Inn on Church Corner in Redmile, near Grantham. The property was guided at £350,000 – £450,000 and attracted a high level of interest from bidders in the room, after some intense competition the lot was sold for £470,000 to a developer looking to convert the building to residential use.  – Westfield Farm in Westborough, Newark was offered at a guide price of £470,000 and finally saw the hammer fall at the significant sum of £600,000. – Development sites on Coronation Street and Christchurch Road in Nottinghamshire, guided between £300,000 and £350,000. The lots sold for £305,000 and £310,000 respectively, proving that positive sentiment remains in the market especially from small private developers. – 37 Parkway, Forest Town, Mansfield, which sold for £80,000 against an original guide of £55,000 –  £60,000. – 15 Middle Orchard Street, Stapleford. A traditional mid terrace offered for sale in need of upgrading and modernisation. Guided between £60,000 and £65,000, the property sold in the room for £75,500. – 2 Carr Road, Bingham, guided between £130,000 to £150,000, the lot provided an excellent opportunity to acquire a modern detached bungalow in a sought after location and sold above guide price at £155,000. Bob Crocker, auction manager and director at Savills Nottingham, comments: “This month’s auction has yet again shown strong demand for traditional properties, representing an ideal purchase for investors and developers. This was to be expected given the new changes to stamp duty on second homes, which came into force at the start of April and our auction was timed to allow investors another opportunity to secure additional properties at the lower rate. “Moving forward, there is still strong demand for residential properties of all price ranges to be offered at auction. Those with a genuine need to sell should be encouraged by past results and look to the auction process as a way to achieve a sale potentially within a much shorter time frame than other methods of sale”. Paul Giles, head of commercial auctions at Savills Nottingham, comments: “This auction, once again generated considerable enthusiasm from those in attendance, with a number of properties selling for significantly above the guide price. People are still willing to bid big on commercial lots, purchasing a wide variety of different properties at a strong price in locations across the country.” The next Savills regional auction in Nottingham will take place on 19th May 2016, with deadlines for entries on Thursday 28th April. Source link

Browser does not support script. Contact us RIBA is pleased to announce the future publication of Sir Banister Fletcher’s A History of Architecture, 21st Edition, a landmark new edition of a long-standing classic providing the most authoritative and up-to-date account of the history of the world’s architecture. Alongside a high-quality print edition planned for publication in autumn 2017, Banister Fletcher will make the move into the digital age, becoming available to a new online audience in 2018 as part of an innovative, interactive digital resource for the study of architecture and architectural history. Sir Banister Fletcher’s A History of Architecture is the world’s acknowledged classic work of architectural history reference. Since the first edition was published in 1896, it has been declared the ‘Book of the Century’ by the American Institute of Architects and has become essential reading for generations of architects and students. This tradition continues today, with the 21st Edition set to provide the most comprehensive global history of architecture available in any form. The new edition will see a series of firsts for this historic book. As well as its first move online, it will be the first time that the text has been entirely rewritten throughout since Sir Banister Fletcher (1866-1953) was alive, and it will also be the first time the work is published in full colour. Jonathan Glasspool, Managing Director of Bloomsbury Academic comments: ‘We are delighted to become the publishers of Sir Banister Fletcher’s A History of Architecture, a work with a long history and distinguished pedigree. With our print publishing expertise and our track-record in producing innovative online resources for the academic and specialist markets, Bloomsbury is uniquely well-placed to re-launch this important work for a new generation of students and scholars.’ Gill Webber, RIBA Executive Director of Communication and Outreach said: ‘For well over 100 years, Sir Banister Fletcher’s A History of Architecture has held an unrivalled position as the definitive publication on the history of architecture. RIBA is delighted to be working with Bloomsbury Publishing and the University of London on the 21st edition including an innovative new digital resource. With this latest edition of the work we hope to inspire a new global generation of readers about architecture and architectural history.’ ENDS For more information, please contact Dora Coventry at Bloomsbury Publishing Dora.Coventry@bloomsbury.com or the RIBA Press Office pressoffice@riba.org   Posted on Wednesday 11th February 2015 Source link

Leading civil engineers, environmental scientists, water experts, water companies and architects are lobbying the House of Lords to ensure the incoming housing law protects new and existing homes from flooding. The Housing and Planning Bill debate is currently passing through the Lords. The group, comprising a number of organisations including the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE), the CIWEM, the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust, and Water UK, said that new development will place additional pressure on critical drainage and flood defence infrastructure. It is appealing to the Lords to amend the Bill so that it restricts developers’ automatic right to directly connect new houses to existing drainage systems and compel them to integrate low-cost measures such as sustainable drainage systems (SuDS), which compensate for the additional flow that new developments create. The Flood and Water Management Act 2010 legislated to this effect, but the law was never implemented. Instead, planning guidelines were produced to require SuDS, but the group said the measure has been toothless in promoting greater flood risk mitigation on new developments, and has failed to promote the added benefits of sustainable drainage for water quality, biodiversity and amenity. The group said an amendment tabled by Baroness Kate Parminter last month will be instrumental in mitigating flood risk. Use of sustainable drainage could save millions of pounds for communities and businesses by reducing the £1.3-£2.2 billion of flood damage each year in England. Natural features can also add to the value of new developments by making them attractive, safer places to live. Former ICE president and flooding expert Professor David Balmforth said: “Flooding is one of the major challenges facing society today, yet we continue to add to the problem by building new homes in a way that makes flooding more likely. This does not have to be the case as there is a proven and low cost solution using SuDs. The Pitt Review and the Committee on Climate Change view them as a force for good; so should the law. We urge the Lords to send the Commons a Bill that will help protect society from flooding.” CIWEM chief executive Terry Fuller said: “It is absurd that in the current age we still allow developers to build homes and automatically connect to the sewer system without any consideration of the impact of doing so. This amendment would set us on the right path to encourage developers to consider flood risk from the outset.” Last week, the water sector urged MPs to support a “vital” new clause added to the Housing and Planning Bill by the House of Lords, which would ensure flood prevention measures are put in place at new housing developments. A version of this news story first appeared on wwtonline Source link

The rental gap between prime offices in Leeds and London is the widest it has ever been according to the latest Spotlight: Leeds Offices report from international real estate advisor Savills.  The firm states that Grade A rents in Leeds city centre currently stand at £27 per sq ft (£291 per sq m), compared to £95 sq ft (£1,023 sq m) in the City of London, which will be a key factor in attracting ‘north-shoring’ firms seeking lower staff and property costs outside the capital. Clare Bailey, associate director in the commercial research team at Savills, comments: “With London rents continuing to increase at speed, Leeds is an extremely attractive alternative.  Over the next five years, almost 10,000 new office jobs will be created in the city, partly as a result of major occupiers relocating back office functions from London to the North.  Although we expect prime rents in Leeds to rise to £30 per sq ft (323 per sq m) in 2019, this will still offer a large discount in comparison to London.” Savills highlights robust city centre take-up of 121,178 sq ft (11,257 sq m) in Leeds for Q1 2016, which is 51% up on the 80,335 sq ft (7,463 sq m) seen in the same period last year.  This was boosted by a number of large deals including 39,605 sq ft (3,679 sq m) let to Hestview Ltd (Sky Bet) at 6 Wellington Place, 25,000 sq ft (2,323 sq m) let to RSM at Central Square and 13,800 sq ft (1,282 sq m) let to Dentsu Aegis at the newly refurbished 6 East Parade.  Strong take-up has been a catalyst for speculative development and Savills says 689,000 sq ft (64,008 sq m) of office space is now under construction in Leeds, including 556,387 sq ft (51,688 sq m) due to be delivered this year of which 47% is already pre-let. Paul Fairhurst, head of Savills Leeds, comments: “While low availability of prime office space has been an on-going theme in the city centre, the completion of 5 and 6 Wellington Place, Central Square, 3 Sovereign Square and 6 Queens Street in Q2 and Q3 this year will deliver a step change in the quality and variety that Leeds can provide.   There are currently more than 500,000 sq ft of named occupier enquiries in excess of 20,000 sq ft, much of which is from the professional and financial services sector, demonstrating the city’s attractiveness.” The office investment market in Leeds is also thriving and last year’s £323 million total was the highest recorded since 2006.  Savills says that although the forthcoming EU referendum has largely seen UK-based investors pause for breath, many overseas investors remain active.  In fact 32% of the £49 million worth of office transactions in Q1 2016 can be attributed to overseas investors compared to just 19% of transactions in 2015.  Key foreign investment deals in the first quarter included the £16 million acquisition of the Yorkshire Bank headquarters by a Spanish family office. Simon Lister, investment director at Savills, comments: “Leeds is on the cusp of some major investment deals, with around £113 million worth of offices currently in solicitors hands.  We understand that around 90% of this is under offer to global investors, which is an important reflection of the UK market as a whole.  If available, we believe that prime 15-year office stock in Leeds would achieve a net initial yield of circa 5.25%, providing a real buying opportunity while the market is in a state of flux surrounding Brexit.” Click here to view the Leeds office market report. Source link

A chemical company was sentenced today in Leeds Crown Court for safety breaches when a very toxic chemical was ejected under pressure. A company maintenance technician unintentionally opened a valve on top of an isotanker at Syngenta Ltd’s Huddersfield plant resulting in the release of between 3.5 and 3.8 tonnes of paraquat dichloride solution. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) prosecuted the firm over the incident. Syngenta Ltd of Leeds Road Huddersfield pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 4 of the Control Of Major Accident Hazards Regulations 1999 and Regulation 5(1) of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 and was fined £200 000 with £13 041 costs by Leeds Crown Court. After the hearing, HSE inspector Angus Robbins commented: “This incident could have been prevented if Syngenta had properly assessed the real risk of the valve being opened while the tank was under pressure” Notes to Editors: The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety. It aims to reduce work-related death, injury and ill health. It does so through research, information and advice, promoting training; new or revised regulations and codes of practice, and working with local authority partners by inspection, investigation and enforcement. www.hse.gov.uk More about the legislation referred to in this case can be found at: www.legislation.gov.uk/ Journalists should approach HSE press office with any queries on regional press releases. Source link