Scarborough Group International (SGI) and GMI Construction has started work on site to deliver a 133,118 sq ft office building at Thorpe Park Leeds, with a value of £52m
Representatives from both SGI and Lowell met on site to mark the official ground-breaking with GMI Construction, the principal contractor for the project, just a matter of weeks after funding was secured for the project through OakNorth Bank.
The pre-let to Lowell was announced earlier this year and represents the largest single out of town office deal ever recorded in West Yorkshire and the biggest property transaction in the Northern Powerhouse region over the last twelve months.
Lowell has agreed a 15-year lease to occupy the building and will relocate its UK headquarters from two sites at Leeds Valley Park.
The building, which will extend over seven floors with two levels of underground podium parking and amenity below, marks the evolution in the design of out of town office space and is being constructed in line with the very latest human health and wellbeing standards.
The phase two development at Thorpe Park Leeds was enabled following a unique investment deal with Legal & General Capital in 2015. Since then a transformational 1.35 million sq ft mixed-use expansion has progressed bringing exceptional new business opportunities to the Leeds City Region.
It has also enabled the delivery of the first section of the ‘East Leeds Orbital Route’ (ELOR), a key piece of transport infrastructure connecting north and east Leeds to Junction 46 of the M1.
This road also unlocks land for the future construction of over 7,000 new homes on the East Leeds area.
The development has been chosen for the new railway station ‘East Leeds Parkway’ and associated Park and Ride, connecting directly to Leeds City Centre in less than eight minutes.
This forms part of a £270m infrastructure investment into Leeds by the Department of Transport.
Designed by architects, Carey Jones Chapman Tolcher, the building is to represent a new benchmark for future development at Thorpe Park Leeds, with an environmental performance target rating of BREEAM ‘Excellent’ and principles set out in the WELL Standard to provide an exemplar environment for users.
GMI expects to complete the building by September 2022.
A huge vote of confidence
Kevin McCabe, chairman at SGI, said: “We are pleased to be able to start on site so quickly after securing planning consent, funding and of course concluding the landmark letting with our new neighbours Lowell.
“The transaction is excellent news for the region and a huge vote of confidence in the existing & future environment at Thorpe Park as well an indicator that the office market remains strong, despite the pandemic.
“We continue to engage with businesses seeking to locate at Thorpe Park Leeds, some of which are existing occupiers looking to expand, and we remain committed to our ambition to deliver further phases of office development to ensure that Thorpe Park maintains and advances its position within the Northern Powerhouse as the flagship location for business, employment and quality of life.”
