Scarborough Group International (SGI), one of the North’s most active real estate development and investment companies, has announced a trio of new deals at Lumina, the latest speculatively-developed office building at its flagship Thorpe Park Leeds project.
The 35,846 sq ft building, which is the second Grade A office to be delivered as part of phase two development at Thorpe Park Leeds, is now fully let endorsing the Group’s decision to speculatively develop the building.
Coverings Ltd, the owner of leading distribution and retail businesses within the tile and flooring industry, has secured the entire 10,600 sq ft first floor at Lumina on a 10-year lease. The business is relocating its team of 100 people from its existing premises at Project House in Armley, Leeds.
Specialist commercial interior design company, Design Tonic has recently completed the fit-out of the space to provide contemporary workspace with a focus on collaboration. The workspace features an auditorium style presentation area, multiple video conference ready meeting rooms, quiet spaces and a large breakout dining area. Design Tonic has also worked closely with Coverings to incorporate its own products in the design and fit out.
Construction group, Galliford Try has also agreed a 10-year lease taking 5,500 sq ft of space on the ground floor. The firm is currently in the process of concluding its fit-out before relocating a team of 150 people from existing premises in Normanton in order to upgrade to a more efficient and flexible working environment.
Multinational, FTSE 100 energy company, SSE is taking occupation of the remaining 3,750 sq ft on the ground floor having also committed to a new 10-year lease, and this will be a new base for its Low Carbon Engineering Team.
Online pharmacy group, Pharmacy2U occupies the remaining 15,770 sq ft on the second and third floors. Other office occupiers secured across the Park over the last two years including Big Change Apps, Wates Construction, Pure Retirement, EP UK Investments and Renew Holdings.
SGI is also well underway to deliver a £52 million, 133,118 sq ft headquarters building which has been pre-let to leading credit management company, Lowell in a ground-breaking deal for the region.
Adam Varley, Development Director at SGI, said:
“We’re delighted to announce that Lumina is now fully let just a few short months after our record-breaking pre-let. These transactions underline the growing appeal of Thorpe Park Leeds as a platform for providing modern, welcoming and inspiring workplaces.
“Covid-19 has significantly increased the attractiveness of out of town business locations, owing to their accessibility, amenity offering and extensive green space – something that Thorpe Park has in abundance with our 330,000 sq ft retail and leisure centre, The Springs and 15-acre Central Park on its doorstep. New infrastructure, including the railway station which is due to be delivered in 2024, alongside our EV charging points and free transport planning service are proving attractive to businesses looking for highly-accessible and sustainable travel options.”
Liam Ridley at BNP Paribas Real Estate which acted for SGI on the deals, said:
“These lettings are great news for Thorpe Park Leeds which continues to draw new occupiers due to its quality of space and the overall environment. Despite the market slowing down due to restrictions imposed during the pandemic, rents across the park continue to increase as businesses seek increasingly better quality buildings.”
Thorpe Park Leeds is a well-established business location, strategically located with its own dedicated access at Junction 46 of the M1. The business park comprises more than 900,000 sq ft of office space and The Springs retail and leisure centre sits at the heart of the mixed-use business community with a line-up of major high street brands including Next, M&S, ODEON Luxe, Pure Gym, Boots, H&M and TK Maxx along with a growing range of smaller, independent, niche retail and leisure businesses.
Further development plans include the delivery of a 113-acre public park with sports and wellbeing village for the community of the Leeds City Region and beyond.
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 Award-winning development has been chosen for the new Thorpe Park Rail Station and associated Park and Ride, connecting directly to Leeds City Centre in less than eight minutes. This forms part of a £270 million infrastructure investment into Leeds by the Department of Transport.