Harworth Estates has completed a new long-term agreement with Network Rail at Asfordby Business Park, Leicestershire.
The agreement will enable Network Rail to develop a new facility – to be known as the Rail Innovation & Development Centre (RIDC) Melton – at the park.
Network Rail runs, maintains and develops Britain’s rail tracks, signalling, bridges, tunnels, level crossings, viaducts and a numbers of key stations. The company has leased plot 14 on a 12-year lease at an annual rent of £24,000. This deal increases Network Rail’s commitment to the park, where it already leases a 90,000 sq ft unit and 12 acres of open storage land.
The RIDC Melton will act as an enabler to promote innovation across the rail industry and to directly support the Rail Technical Strategy (RTS). Network Rail continues to deliver an ambitious programme of investment to provide extra capacity and capability for passenger and freight customers.
Dave Travis, Business Parks Manager at Harworth, said: “We have put a lot of effort into enhancing our business park stock to encourage existing customers to renew or extend their leases over the past twelve months and nowhere is this more evident than at Asfordby Business Park. We are delighted that Network Rail is developing such a prestigious and much-needed new facility and we look forward to continuing to work with the company to bring it to fruition.”
David Biggs, Managing Director at Network Rail Property, said: “We are pleased to secure this new space immediately adjacent to our existing facility at Asfordby Business Park. This will allow Network Rail to meet the needs of our growing customer base at the Rail Innovation and Development Centre (RIDC).”
Asfordby Business Park is a 127-acre development near Melton Mowbray that benefits from having an onsite rail connection, as well as being connected to the M1 motorway via the A46 trunk road. Office and industrial units and development land are still available at Asfordby, with the site capable of accommodating a unit of up to 265,000 sq ft.
Lambert Smith Hampton and Colliers International are the agents for the park.