Recently in South West Category

Pics: John Lewis store taking shape in Exeter

By Stacey Meadwell on August 21, 2012 9:53 AM | No TrackBacks

John Lewis's long awaited store in Exeter finally opens its doors on October 12 and such is the excitement that some people have even taken the day off so as to enjoy this momentous retailing occasion to the full.

Speaking to John Lewis's PR's a few years ago, before the store - a conversion of the former Debenhams - was even mooted, they confessed to getting regular calls from Exeter ladies asking when the never knowingly undersold retailer was coming to the city.

But just to add to the excitement, earlier this month, it was announced that there will be a John Lewis pop-up store in the city centre for six weeks prior to the opening - the retail equivalent of a trailer before the main feature.

Click on the slide show below to see how the store is shaping up and how LandSec's Princesshay (£) is weathering nearly five years on from opening.

Second phase of homes at Locking Parklands launched

By Nadia Elghamry on July 30, 2012 8:20 AM | No TrackBacks

St Modwen has just got planning for a second phase of homes at its Locking Parklands site in Weston Super Mare. Come the autumn work is expected to start on 150 more homes at the massive site which will eventually have 1,250 homes on it, along with 650,000 sq ft of what it is loosely calling employment space. They've also released a couple of new images of what the development will look like.

EG South West Focus synopsis

By Stacey Meadwell on July 27, 2012 2:54 PM | No TrackBacks

EG South West Focus

Published September 15

Bristol offices

Analysis of current conditions and future trends.

Contact: Jack Sidders, South West news correspondent, 020 7911 1810, jack.sidders@estatesgazette.com

*Jack is now covering the South West and Wales for news*

Development

Analysis of activity across the region.

Contact: David Thame, freelance writer, 01544 262 896, dthame@clara.co.uk

Plymouth versus Exeter

A tale of two Devon cities: Analysis of market conditions and prospects.

Contact: Stacey Meadwell, regional editor, 020 7911 1819, stacey.meadwell@estatesgazette.com

*Stacey is planning to visit the South West as part of her research, get in touch for more details*

Market health check

Number crunching: Figures up to end of Q2 for key markets and sectors - get in touch with Nadia Elghamry, deputy regional editor if you can help nadia.elghamry@estatesgazette.com

Please contact writers directly about their individual features, no later than Monday August 20

London & County launch Victoria Central in Bristol

By Nadia Elghamry on July 17, 2012 9:51 AM | No TrackBacks

Yet more plans have been launched on Victoria Street in Bristol. Yesterday saw the launch of London & County's Victoria Central (there's a nice shiny picture opposite) an 88,000 sq ft redevelopment. There's no mention of a start date and we've heard work will wait for a prelet before going ahead.

In the speeches at the launch there was a lot of talk of confidence in the market, the lack of grade A space and a limited development pipeline; all of which is true. But, it's worth remembering that London & County will be competing against some other high profile stock in the market that is still waiting to let (£).

For example, just down the road is Prupim and Cubex's One Victoria Street, which went for planning last September. This will deliver 48,000 sq ft into the marketplace. Then there's HDG Mansur's 110,000 sq ft Bridgewater House which was completed to shell and core in May 2011. At the end of last year it secured one letting - 9,000 sq ft to accountants BDO - but is still waiting for its first big deal. Whispers that another deal might soon be in the offing, a large deal at that, are yet to materialise.UK & European Investments is also on the prowl for a juicy letting at its Templeback development.

Things are slow in any of the big regional markets, and until there are a few more occupiers putting pen to paper sadly more and more developments are likely to remain just a shiny image. But after a drought of shiny images for many, many months its still nice to see them starting to roll back in.

Stoford and Savills crowned EG's Wales and South West victors

By Nadia Elghamry on May 4, 2012 8:53 AM | No TrackBacks

Savills and Stoford were crowned Wales and South West's property finest at the EG regional awards yesterday. At a sumptuous lunch at Cardiff's Parc Hotel for RICS Wales awards, the pair picked up gongs for property adviser and property company of the year Wales and South West.

The award is the second year running that Savills (pictured bottom left) has been crowned regional champion and echoes two other regional wins from the agent last night

with Savills picking up EG gongs in the North West and South East.

For Stoford (pictured top right) the prize is quite an accolade. The West Midlands-based developer was, up until last year, a relatively unknown name on the Wales and South West scene. Director Dominic Stokes said he was "delighted" to have won the votes of so many readers. Stokes added that with the firm's home markets going quiet, Wales and the South West "are where we see our growth."

Over 6,000 readers voted in the regional awards. EG's national awards will take place at the London Hilton on Park Lane in December. Click here for more details.

Pictures copyright of EyeImagery

Other EG regional award winners reports:

North West

East Midlands

Listen: Bristol Arena needed now

By Nadia Elghamry on February 24, 2012 10:22 AM | No TrackBacks

Cardiff has it all. You don't often hear a Bristol agent say that. He was talking about an arena for the city and how Bristol needs a big venue now.

You only need to look at the crowds for the six nations rugby the other weekend in Cardiff to see what the benefits could be.

Many property people think that it's a disgrace that the South West's capital city is without a major venue.

We grabbed some of Bristol's leading property agents and developers at the EG reception today what they think, where an arena should go and what the council should be doing to make it's arena dream a reality.

Click below to listen to what Martin Booth at Knight Frank, Chris Grazier at Hartnell Taylor Cook and Phil Morton at CBRE had to say.

Swindon swindled out of offices as Muse gets Union Square nod

By Nadia Elghamry on January 18, 2012 4:07 PM | No TrackBacks

Hurrah! some good news. Muse and the Homes and Communities Agency have been given the go-ahead for the first phase of the long, and eagerly, awaited £350m Union Square scheme in Swindon. Construction will begin this spring. That's what the press release said today anyway, and it's what most of the news wires have reported.

The first phase had consisted of 450 homes, 600,000 sq ft of commercial space, a new medical facility, a 100-bed hotel, 145,000 sq ft of ancillary retail, car parking and a new bus station.

Swindon will be getting a lovely new car park but is it being swindled out of its offices?

Today, Chris Hitchings, director of development at Forward Swindon, said: "Around summer 2013, we can look forward to the first offices of Union Square start on site. It's a great start to the year and everyone on the project is excited."

However, that now seems slightly misleading.

What Muse have got planning for today is the resi element and the car park and work on these will begin in the Spring. The offices have not yet been cleared, and despite being in the original planning application seem to have got lost in transit somewhere.

A Muse spokeswoman said that there "may be" an office element to phase one but it will be prelet led. The main objective will be to try and relocate the current Primary Care Trust (which is across the road) to the Union Square scheme, who will take the office space. If that does happen then it, along with most developers in the country, will be left casting around for a prelet.

Shame. Last autumn the local property industry were talking about what confidence cranes and commercial space would bring to the market. Despite the hubris today it looks like they'll still be waiting.

There is however a nice picture of the rather lovely car park above. Go on, have a good look, it is a lovely looking car park. Almost as lovely as Newport's new landmark car park which turned out to be just about the only development the city has ultimately seen.

Co-op launches roadshow to find retail space

By Nadia Elghamry on November 16, 2011 12:15 PM | No TrackBacks

The march of the supermarkets seems unstoppable.

Despite yesterday's retail figures telling us while food sales rose, they were unseasonally slow, it seems the supermarkets can't find space quick enough. The Co-operative Group is the latest to up the ante.

The ethical grocer is looking to expand across the country and, presumably isn't finding it easy. Instead of sitting on its haunches and waiting for the agents to do their bit it is launching its very own roadshow to try and winkle those units out.

The tour starts out in the South West and Wales where the retailer is hosting two events. Many more are planned for next year.

Details of its expansion are vague. When asked the Co-op would only say it was looking to "significantly increase" the number of stores through 2012.

In last week's magazine, in our Wales' Focus, we reported that the supermarkets were the only show in town (£). Actually it was crueler than that we said supermarkets were the only guests left at the retail party - the ones the developers didn't want to invite in the first place.

With the Co-op due to open four new stores in the South West and South Wales in just the next three weeks on top of its announcement that it's bought three more stores off Budgens that doesn't look likely to change any time soon.

South West Focus features synopsis

By Nadia Elghamry on October 20, 2011 3:50 PM | No TrackBacks

Published 3rd December 2011

Market Overview

A look at market conditions and predictions for the South West office and industrial market. If you think you can provide up to date rents for offices and industrial in the South West then please contact either:

Nadia Elghamry, deputy regional editor, 020 7911 1849, nadia.elghamry@estatesgazette.com

Stacey Meadwell, regional editor, 020 7911 1819, stacey.meadwell@estatesgazette.com

lease contact writers with editorial information by Wednesday 9th November, 2011

Dorchester regeneration project secures funding

By Stacey Meadwell on September 5, 2011 5:03 PM | No TrackBacks

Money deals are always good news in today's cash strapped times so great to hear that Brewary Square Development Company has secured £14m from Bank of London and The Middle East for its Dorchester regeneration project.

The money will go towards construction of phase two - there are six phases in total - of the Brewary Square scheme which will comprise 64 homes and 14 commercial units. Crucially, and I'm sure a contributing factor to the signing of the cheque, 75% of the residential space has be forward sold and a number of the commercial units are pre-let to fashion retailers.

* Keep an eye out on the Focus blog later in the week for our Hampshire and Dorset Focus synopsis and coverage of our Southampton reception which is being held on Wednesday

« South Wales | Main Index | Archives | Suffolk »

Stacey Meadwell: And you too, thanks for coming. Stacey read more
Tim Catterall: Great to see you all Stacey and thanks for your read more
Nadia Elghamry: Hi Paul, The figures do indicate however, the strength of read more
Paul Swinney: The poor churn rate of a city could reflect a read more
Nadia Elghamry: Hi Paul, Thanks for your comments, but I would argue read more
Paul Swinney: Unfortunately this article has misinterpreted what the data shows. The read more
Nadia Elghamry: Cardiff and Co's managing director Richard Thomas strongly disagrees with read more
Charles Cardiff: No need to worry, chaps. Welsh Gov has no power read more
Nadia Elghamry: Hi Robert, You are absolutely right but I think Gareth's read more
Robert Hathaway: I dont think Eric Pickles has any jurisdictional in planning read more

Recently in South West Category

Pics: John Lewis store taking shape in Exeter

Second phase of homes at Locking Parklands launched

EG South West Focus synopsis

London & County launch Victoria Central in Bristol

Stoford and Savills crowned EG's Wales and South West victors

Listen: Bristol Arena needed now

Swindon swindled out of offices as Muse gets Union Square nod

Co-op launches roadshow to find retail space

South West Focus features synopsis

Dorchester regeneration project secures funding

Categories

Subscribe to EG

Search

Pages

Focus Team Elsewhere

Recent Comments

Recent Entries

Recently in South West Category

Subscribe by E-mail

Categories

Subscribe to EG

Search

Pages

Focus Team Elsewhere

Recent Comments

Recent Entries

Other Focus Bloggers

Other EG Bloggers