Wider appeal
YORKSHIRE BUSINESS INSIDER
June 2010
Never mind a business park, these days occupiers want developers to build them a whole village KURT JACOBS reports
Making business parks more user friendly has become the biggest issue for developers adopting the model. As Roddy Morrison, director of offices at property agency Colliers CRE in Leeds, says: “The days when you could fill a business park by putting it close to a motorway junction and sticking in a coffee shop are gone. They have to look more like mixed-use developments.”
The selling points were cheap buildings, plenty of parking and easy access. However, the deals being offered on good city centre offices across Yorkshire have eroded the price advantage of business parks. And being stuck by a motorway with only the sound of passing traffic to distract you from your job does not attract staff.
Occupiers now demand shops, pubs, cafes, hotels, creches, gyms and good public transport. “Decent facilities are crucial to the viability of a business park. Occupiers are looking at a complete package, including what's on offer for staff” says Robin Beagley, partner at property consultancy WSB.
As such, developers are putting money into turning business parks into communities that take into account human desires to eat, play, shop and sleep. Many are no longer based on the original US college campus model, and are promoted as business villages.
Yorkcourt Properties' Paragon,styles itself as a business village with a pub, restaurant, creche, fitness club and mid-market hotel. Thorpe Park near Leeds is planning to add a second hotel, spa, supermarket, creche and coffee shop – according to developer Scarborough Group - “the emphasis on a more enjoyable experience of being at work”.
And Peel Holding has submitted a planning application to create an amenities village for the Waters Edge part of its Calder Park development, near Wakefield, which will include a creche, cafe and dry cleaners.
The consensus is that, with cuts in government spending, public sector developments such as West Yorkshire Police's 80,000 sq ft centre for finger printing and forensics being built at Calder Park, will pruned sharply.
While typical Grade A prices on Yorkshire business parks have stayed static at £16.50 to £18.50 per sq ft, beneath that are hidden a range of incentives such as free fit-outs, rates paid and a year's rent free. And while the price of new stock is holding up well, pundits say prices have fallen and incentives have risen further on older, less desirable parks.
“Anything above 5,000 sq ft is a big enquiry” says Beagley. “Lots of smaller companies, particularly in IT and media, are using the opportunity to take advantage of deals to upgrade”.
