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St Francis and ALMCOR announce sale of 80 acres of land at prime logistics development site in Derbyshire to BentallGreenOak and Equation Properties

Kenneth Booth January 10, 2022

Development land is situated within its Horizon 29 scheme which extends to 140 acres in total capable of accommodating 1.4M sq ft of prime warehouse and logistics space. ALMCOR and St. Francis Group sell 80 acres of Logistics Development Land at Horizon 29, North Derbyshire, to BentallGreenOak and Equation Properties

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Issue 328 : May 2025

st francis group

Ground broken on latest multi-million development to come to prime logistics site at Bolsover, North Derbyshire.

Kenneth Booth July 21, 2022

New £20M 113,000 sq ft robot led HQ/Warehouse Facility under construction for fast-growing pharmacy chain Peak Pharmacy at new Horizon 29 development. St Francis Group, a leading UK-based property development and investment group and an expert in brownfield development and regeneration and its joint venture partner ALMCOR has announced that it has officially broken ground on a new 113,000 sq ft robot led HQ/warehouse for fast growing Chesterfield based Pharmacy Chain Peak Pharmacy at its much sought after Horizon 29 industrial development site at Bolsover, North Derbyshire. Works on the £20M ultra-modern headquarters and facility commenced at the start of June and are accelerating rapidly.  The new facility will use state of the art robotics and automated systems to support staff handling over 400,000 medicines and other prescribed items every month, equating to 20,000 a day, more than 40 every minute. The new Pharmacy Service Centre will handle prescriptions and dispatch medicines for the firm’s 150 community pharmacies across England. Prescriptions will be assembled for individual patients, then either delivered to local pharmacies for collection the next day, or direct to patients’ homes. The new hub is expected to take 9 months to build and due to open in April next year. It will house up to 100 staff, with the potential to grow into a 24-hour operation in future. MCS Construction has been appointed as the main building contractor.  St Francis Group also acknowledges the support of the Northeast Derbyshire District Council, Bolsover District Council, Derbyshire County Council and the D2N2 LEP in bringing this development forward. Speaking about the start on site Gareth Williams, Development Director at St Francis Group, said: “We are absolutely delighted to have formally marked the start of works onsite and to be building this fantastic new facility for fast-growing customer Peak Pharmacy with the team onsite already having made significant progress.  This new facility serves as the first unit to be built at Horizon 29, welcoming our first occupier.  Since we commenced the extensive remediation of the site interest in the scheme has been extensive and the recent sale by the JV of 80 acres of land to BentallGreenOak for the speculative development of 1.2 million sq ft of warehouse and logistics space speaks to that. We look forward to working with the team at Peak Pharmacy and delivering a first-class facility next year.” Also in comment Joe Cattee, the Managing Director of Peak Pharmacy, said: “These are ambitious plans for our company, staff and customers – in the face of a rapidly changing pharmacy landscape. This new facility will be truly transformational for us. We’re investing now to future-proof our business, so that we can continue to provide great local customer service which means so much to us. We are very pleased to be working with St Francis and ALMCOR and the full project team and look forward to seeing the development rise out of the ground as it happens.” For further information on the development visit: www.horizon29.com

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Construction commences on new 113,000 sq ft speculative industrial development in Walsall

Kenneth Booth May 19, 2022

Ground has been broken on the development being marketed as Parallel 113 with the Grade A specification warehouse logistics unit expected to be complete and available by January 2023. St Francis Group a leading UK-based property development and investment group, and an expert in brownfield development and regeneration, today announced that it has broken ground and commenced construction of a new 113,000 sq ft unit – branded as Parallel 113 – being developed speculatively in Walsall. Parallel 113 will create a high-quality warehouse/logistics unit which will be available for occupation from January 2023. The development will remediate a brownfield site of just over 2.5 hectares close to Junction 10 of the M6 which is currently undergoing a £78 million enhancement by Highways England to increase capacity and reduce congestion.  When occupied the scheme will provide up to 200 new jobs. MCS Construction has been appointed as the main building contractor.  St Francis Group also acknowledges the support of the Black Country Local Enterprise Partnership and Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council in bringing this development forward. Speaking about the start of construction St Francis Group Development Director Gareth Williams said: “We are delighted to be on site with the construction of another high-quality unit, and to be developing in such a prominent location adjoining the M6 motorway.  There remains a distinct shortage of warehouse/industrial space across the Midlands and now that we have started on site, we expect a high level of interest from potential occupiers. The new unit will be extremely well connected being just under a mile from junction 9 of the M6, offering unrivalled connectivity and built to a high specification. We look forward to watching construction as it happens and seeing the progress on site” Also Speaking about the project, MCS Group Managing Director, Keir Edmonds said: “MCS are pleased to continue their partnership with St Francis Group to deliver premium industrial space in the West Midlands. The project demonstrates how brownfield sites can be remediated utilising ground improvement techniques and put back into use, whilst retaining and enhancing the local environment and ecology.” For further information visit: www.parallel113.co.uk Building Design and Construction Magazine | The Home of Construction & Property News

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Key Walsall industrial development site moves a step closer to starting after securing grant funding

Kenneth Booth January 18, 2022

Development of the site – branded Parallel 113 will see the speculative development of a 113,000 sq ft grade A specification warehouse logistics unit with construction expected to commence in March. St Francis Group has today announced that it has secured grant funding from the Black Country Local Enterprise Partnership to deliver a new, speculative 113,000 sq ft warehouse/logistics scheme at a site in Walsall. The site at Darlaston Road, branded as Parallel 113, sits within the Black Country Enterprise Zone and will create a high-quality warehouse/logistics unit, with construction set to commence in March. The development will remediate a brownfield site of just over 2.5 hectares close to Junction 10 of the M6 which is currently undergoing a £78 million enhancement by Highways England to increase capacity and reduce congestion. The development had already been given the green light by Walsall Council’s Planning Committee in autumn 2020 and is being developed speculatively.   When occupied the scheme will provide up to 200 new jobs. The new Darlaston train station, which also received the go ahead in 2020, is set to open on the Walsall-Wolverhampton line by 2023. Speaking about the award of the funding St Francis Group Development Director Gareth Williams said: “We are very happy to be able to announce today the award of this multi-million-pound funding which moves construction of the Parallel 113 scheme a stage closer. There is a chronic shortage of mid-box sized logistics accommodation currently right across the west midlands conurbation and this development will go some way to addressing that. The building will be constructed to a Grade A standard and specification and ideally suited to a range of flexible occupier requirements.  We are already fielding a strong level of interest and look forward to further announcements in due course.” Speaking about the development, Deputy Leader of Walsall Council, Cllr Adrian Andrew said: “This decision allows us to move forward with a scheme that will provide valuable jobs and a welcome boost to the local economy. The council and its partners have invested a great deal of effort to get to this stage and I look forward to work beginning on site in the near future This is another piece in the jigsaw of building back better in our Borough. Walsall is open for business and a great place to invest.’ *** To download a high resolution CGI of the proposed development click https://momentus.box.com/s/5g6h6oo8meon23s53i0hwkiau6meadej  *** For further information visit : www.parallel113.co.uk

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St Francis and ALMCOR announce sale of 80 acres of land at prime logistics development site in Derbyshire to BentallGreenOak and Equation Properties

Kenneth Booth January 10, 2022

Development land is situated within its Horizon 29 scheme which extends to 140 acres in total capable of accommodating 1.4M sq ft of prime warehouse and logistics space. ALMCOR and St. Francis Group sell 80 acres of Logistics Development Land at Horizon 29, North Derbyshire, to BentallGreenOak and Equation Properties Bolsover Land Limited (‘BLL’), a joint venture between ALMCOR (formally known as iSec) and St. Francis Group, has sold over 80 acres at its 1.4 million sq. ft. Horizon 29 warehouse and logistics development to BentallGreenOak (‘BGO’) and their development partner, Equation Properties for £39.9 million. BGO and Equation will develop up to 1.2 million sq. ft. at Horizon 29 across the 140-acre strategic brownfield site located adjacent to Junction 29A of the M1 and Markham Vale. Horizon 29, formerly the Coalite works, was acquired by BLL in 2012.  The site has been remediated and core infrastructure constructed to allow for development to further consolidate Horizon 29 as one of the East Midlands’ premier industrial and logistics location. BLL retains over 33 acres for further development which will be brought forward alongside the BGO development. Rupert Wood, Head of Strategic Land at ALMCOR, said: “This is an excellent deal for the JV having bought the site in 2012.  It will drive forward the delivery of Horizon 29 while allowing ALMCOR to release capital to recycle it into other substantial projects that we are bringing forward, such as Thames Enterprise Park in Thurrock.  Working with our JV partner, St Francis Group, we have delivered a warehousing and logistics site into an increasingly constrained market at the right time demonstrating our credentials as strategic land specialists.” Gareth Williams, Development Director at St Francis Group, said: “This sale highlights the expertise within the Group and the wider Joint Venture to unlock technically challenging brownfield sites, and to complete significant highway and service infrastructure to create a development ready site capable of immediate development.  Having jointly invested significant funds to achieve this in time to capitalise on rising demand for serviced land, we are delighted to have completed this sale to BGO and to have secured a programme of speculative development at Horizon29.”  Gareth Purcell, Managing Director at BentallGreenOak, said: “We are delighted to have closed on the acquisition.  The first phases of the site already benefit from Reserved Matters planning consent and we will be commencing speculative development works on site during Q2 with the first units completing by year-end.  This deal, which completed on Christmas Eve, closes out a very busy year for BGO’s UK logistics platform, with us having acquired land to deliver c. 5m sq.ft. of new logistics space with our partners at Equation Properties in addition to a further 3.7m sq.ft. of standing assets across a total of 12 separate transactions.” BLL was advised by JLL and Clyde & Co and BGO and Equation were advised by Burbage Realty and Taylor Wessing. For further information on the development visit: www.horizon29.com

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Final set of cooling towers successfully blown down at Eggborough Power Station.

Kenneth Booth October 11, 2021

Landscape changing demolition constitutes the next key milestone in the redevelopment of the iconic site which is set to be transformed into a state of the art logistics and distribution park. On Sunday 10th October 2021 DSM Demolition, sister company to leading regeneration specialists and an expert in brownfield development. St Francis Group successfully demolished the last four cooling towers at the former Eggborough Power station plant in Goole, North Yorkshire.  The landscape changing demolition was the next key milestone in the redevelopment of the site which is earmarked for mixed use regeneration in a Joint Venture by St Francis Group and Marshall Commercial Development Projects. The implosion took place at 09:00 a.m within the perimeter of a secured 350m diameter exclusion zone to safeguard the public and third parties Over 50 DSM employees implemented the localised road closures and the exclusion zone supported by officers from North Yorkshire Police on the day and state of the art surveillance equipment including heat seeking drones ensured that the zone was completely sterile in advance of the works DSM worked closely with Northern Gas networks and National Grid to ensure uninterrupted gas and electricity supplies to the local area. The 90m high towers were only 60meters distance from the National Grid sub-station open switch gear and overhead lines, this was a challenging aspect of the job and meticulous planning and protective measures were required to ensure that our works did not impact on their continuing operations In advance of the works DSM met with local councillors to explain the works approach and to emphasise our prime concern of the safety of the public and monitoring measures to evidence that the works did not cause an environmental pollution nuisance. Commenting on the blowdown, DSM Project Manager, James Fincham said: “18-months of planning and work on site to achieve what has been accomplished today is a testament to the demolition team on site and all involved with the project. Plans and preparation are now well underway for the further demolition works to be undertaken in 2022.” Also commenting St Francis Group Director of Operations, Simon Dale said:“On behalf of St Francis Group and Marshall CDP, I would like to thank the DSM team for their successful and safe implementation of our second explosive event at the former Eggborough Power Station plant. The team have worked diligently over the past few months to ensure the event was planned, co-ordinated and implemented safely. The removal of all 8no cooling towers is a significant milestone for the development, and we look forward to working further with DSM and others to regenerate this site and create economic development for the region.”   *** EXCLUSIVE LINK TO VIDEO *** https://we.tl/t-0HTIGosY0r

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St Francis and iSec announce latest deal at thriving Horizon 38 mixed-use development in Bristol

Kenneth Booth September 28, 2021

The building of a new 16,986 sq. ft flagship car dealership on a 1.63-acre plot has completed, been leased to Volvo Cars UK with the investment sold to CBRE Global Investors. St Francis Group and its development partner iSec have confirmed the completion and sale of a16,986 sq ft new build to suit flagship car dealership leased to Volvo Cars UK and sold to CBRE Global Investors at its Horizon 38 mixed-use development in Bristol. The development on a plot of 1.63 acres has been let on basis of a 20-year lease and was sold with a forward commitment to purchase from the new owners. The showroom was delivered early by contractors MCS Construction. Speaking about the sale and development – St Francis Group Director Gareth Williams said: “We are delighted to have completed another exciting project at Horizon 38 and a sale to CBRE Global Investors. This is the second car dealership on site, and everyone involved with its delivery deserves a huge pat on the back when you consider the extremely difficult conditions that we have faced over the last 18 months. Horizon 38 serves as the premier mixed-use destination in Bristol and the South West and has been a tremendous success – now home to a thriving community of occupiers” Also commenting, Richard Howell Principal Investment at Avison Young “We are seeing unprecedented demand for secure long income investments especially in prime established locations such as Horizon 38. We were delighted to have signed Volvo on a 20-year lease and then secure the forward commitment to purchase from CBRE Global Investors on behalf of St Francis and iSec” Simon Bennett, Director at JLL also said “We are really pleased to have secured this opportunity for CBRE Global Investors. Horizon 38 is a well-located development that has been successful in attracting a wide range of tenants such as GKN, Car Shop and Selco. This investment offers the fund a secure long term income stream with rental uplifts at an attractive yield to other sectors”. Avison Young acted for iSec / St Francis, and JLL acted for the buyer, CBREGI. Horizon 38 is Bristol and the South-West premier mixed-use development spanning 65 acres, featuring Logistics, Industrial, Trade, Hotel, and Car Showroom opportunities totalling over 1M sq ft.  It is home to leading occupiers including Ceva, The Delivery Group and Sytner together with GKN in a 115,000 sq ft R&D facility and Village Resorts in a new 153 bedroom hotel. For further information visit: https://www.horizon38.com/

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Planning green light for major new multi-unit industrial and logistics development in Birmingham

Kenneth Booth February 28, 2021

29-acre scheme to be known as Spectrum Logistics Park will see the speculative development of 400,000 sq. ft of logistics/industrial space across 8 units at a site in Kings Norton, Birmingham. St Francis Group and its development partners the Richardson family have today announced that full planning consent has been obtained for the development of 400,000 sq. ft of new industrial warehouse space on a site of 29 acres at Eckersall Road, Kings Norton, Birmingham. An expert in brownfield regeneration, St Francis Group has teamed up with the Richardson family again making this the third collaboration between the parties following the successful development of nearly 600,000 sq. ft of speculative warehouse space across the region. The scheme to be known as Spectrum Logistics Park will feature 8 new highly specified industrial/warehouse units ranging in size from 25,000 to 70,000 sq ft, all built to a highly efficient BREEAM Excellent rating. Speaking about the announcement Gareth Williams, Director at St Francis Group said: “We are very happy today to confirm that full planning consent has been granted to develop this important new mid-box scheme right in the heart of the greater Birmingham conurbation.  As we move into the build phase, we are continuing to see huge demand for units in this mid industrial box sector and are already marketing the scheme for pre-lets.” Demolition work on site is scheduled to begin in May once the existing occupiers have moved out and the first units will be ready for occupation from September 2022. Richard James-Moore of letting agents JLL who are jointly appointed with Savills said, “This is an exciting new development of sustainable space and Spectrum Logistics Park will probably be the first new development in Birmingham to offer a BREEAM Excellent accreditation giving occupiers truly sustainable options”. Spectrum Logistics Park will be situated on the site of the former Pilkington Automotive and GKN Aerospace manufacturing plants in Kings Norton within the southern Birmingham conurbation and adjacent to the A441 and A38 offering fast connections throughout the region. Savills and JLL are jointly appointed to market the scheme.

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Planning greenlight for new St Francis Group logistics development in Walsall

Kenneth Booth October 19, 2020

Permission granted for major new warehouse development of 113,000 sq ft at a site in Darlaston, adjacent to the M6 near Wednesbury in the West Midlands St Francis Group, a leading UK-based property development and investment group and an expert in brownfield development has announced that it has received planning permission for a 113,000 sq ft warehouse development at a site in Darlaston, near Wednesbury in the West Midlands. The 7-acre scheme – to be marketed as Parallel 113 is situated off the A4038 Darlaston Road and sits at the heart of the UK’s leading supply chain centres within easy access of junctions 9 and 10 of the M6 together with being in close proximity to the M5, M54 and M42 motorways. The development is to be developed speculatively with site clearance work staring in January and the unit will be ready for occupation in the Spring of 2022. It will be developed to a high quality, grade A standard and incorporate 107,350 sq ft warehouse/logistics accommodation together with 5,650 sq ft of first floor office accommodation.  It will feature 12.5m clear internal working height, 10 dock level doors, 2 level access, 50m depth secure fenced yard together with 101 car parking spaces and 98 HGV trailer parking spaces. Speaking about the announcement and development – St Francis Development Director Gareth Williams said: “This is a significant commitment to Walsall, the Black Country Enterprise Zone and to the greater Birmingham area. It shows our faith in the continued occupier story of increasing demand seen against dwindling stock and we expect to be delivering another high-quality scheme very soon”.  Savills and JLL are jointly appointed to market the site.

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St Francis Group announces the sale of 561,000 sq ft of logistics space to Tristan Capital Partners.

Kenneth Booth September 7, 2020

A Tristan Capital Partners fund has bought a £68m UK logistics portfolio from the Richardson family which includes Cransley Park, Kettering and Velocity 42, Redditch developed in partnership with St Francis Group. The portfolio which also includes a unit of 105,000 sq. ft in Avonmouth developed by Curtis Hall, consists of 11 new-build logistics buildings. St Francis Group, a leading UK-based property development and investment group and an expert in brownfield development sold development ready sites to the Richardson family in December 2017 and have since worked in partnership to deliver an ambitious speculative development programme. At the time of sale 145,000 sq. ft of space was either occupied or under offer. Talking about the deal Gareth Williams, Director at St Francis Group said: “During difficult times we are delighted to have been able to capitalise on continued investor appetite for high quality and well-located industrial warehouse stock.  The St Francis Group building specification has evolved into a superior yet economical product and having regenerated both former brown field sites, we are delighted to see them sold into long term ownership.” For further information visit : www.cransley-park.co.uk and www.velocity-42.co.uk

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St Francis Group announces major employment plans for Kings Norton, Birmingham with new site purchase.

Kenneth Booth September 3, 2020

A 29-acre site is the latest industrial/warehouse scheme brought forward by the developer as it continues to expand its development pipeline St Francis Group, a leading UK-based property development and investment group and an expert in brownfield development and regeneration has announced that it has assembled a site of 29 acres in Kings Norton, Birmingham for the development of new industrial warehouse space. Announcing the purchase of the Pilkington Automotive and GKN Aerospace sites, the speculative development of a 400,000 sq. ft multi-unit scheme will be funded by the Richardson family making this the third collaboration between the two parties following the successful development and sale of Velocity42 in Redditch and Cransley Park in Kettering. A detailed planning application will be submitted later this year with work on site scheduled to begin once the existing occupiers vacate next year. The new proposals could create around 900 new jobs.     Speaking about the announcement Gareth Williams, Director at St Francis Group said “We are delighted to have secured these strategic sites and to be able to promote a scheme in the heart of the greater Birmingham conurbation. We have seen a huge growth in the mid box industrial warehouse market, and we will be aiming to meet that demand with 8 new energy efficient units ranging from 25,000 sq. ft to 70,000 sq. ft”  “We recognise the value in higher performing sustainable assets and so we are looking to develop units using construction standards that exceed occupier expectations throughout their life cycle.” New units will be ready for occupation by the end of 2022. Marketing for pre-let deals will begin immediately. Savills and JLL have been retained as sole letting agents on the scheme.

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