400 jobs a step closer as final phase of employment park completes
The creation of 400 jobs has moved a step closer after Opus Land revealed it has achieved practical completion of the final phase of CONNEQT at Kingswood Lakeside in Cannock.
The site was acquired from Staffordshire County Council which had been the freeholders of the site and responsible for the creation of Kingswood Lakeside Business Park.
CONNEQT was funded via a combination of grant, debt and equity through the Greater Birmingham and Solihull LEP (GBS LEP), the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) via Frontier Development Capital and Bridges Fund Management. It was bought late last year with vacant possession by Canal & River Trust.
Opus Land bought two Grade A industrial units on site totalling 283,353 sq ft.
Victoria Turnbull, joint managing director of Opus Land, said: “We are delighted to have finished our fifth development at Kingswood Lakeside in Cannock and we are proud of the transformation that Opus Land’s developments have made to regenerating this key site in Cannock District.”
“Opus has transformed a dormant site on challenging ground and brought it back into economic use. CONNEQT will create jobs and encourage further investment in this region, which is at the heart of what the WMCA was set up to do.”
Nick Oakley, head of property at Frontier Development Capital, said: “The WMCA’s Collective Investment Fund aims to accelerate site regeneration and support economic growth, so the CONNEQT development presented an excellent investment opportunity for the fund. It’s fantastic to see such a high quality development in the region reach practical completion”.
Guy Bowden, partner at Bridges Fund Management, said: “The new development is a response to strong occupier demand while also having a positive impact on the local area. The remediation work has regenerated a brownfield site that has been derelict for over 50 years. The units have been constructed using sustainable construction technology to achieve an EPC ‘A Rating’. Only 1.5% of commercial buildings in the UK currently achieve this level.
We expect that approximately 400 jobs will be created once both buildings are fully occupied.”
Originally posted on The Business Desk October 2019
RETAIL: Stove Works Retail Park, Royal Leamington Spa
Opus Land and Savills Investment Management purchased a brownfield site, which was formerly a Ford Factory car park and obtained planning for a 60,000 sq. ft retail space, located just 0.5 miles from the town centre and 15 minutes’ walk from the train station.
INDUSTRIAL: Prospero, Ansty
Together with their joint venture partner, Manse LLP, and on behalf of Rolls-Royce, Opus Land are delivering more than 2 million sq. ft of space at Prospero, Ansty, starting with a 490,000 sq. ft manufacturing facility for Meggitt PLC.
WAREHOUSE: Conneqt Alpha
Opus Land and Bridges completed an 153,800 sq. ft unit with 16 loading doors at the Kingwood Lakeside Business Park in Cannock.
OFFICES: 54 Hagley Road, Birmingham
A 160,950 sq. ft multi-let office, three miles from Birmingham city centre which underwent a comprehensive refurbishment programme by Opus Land and was sold for £24.25m.
