Occupier Interest Sought for Helix at Gateway 36

Construction of the steel frame for Harworth Estates’ new 75,000 sq. ft Helix unit at Gateway 36, the largest speculative commercial development in Barnsley for a number of years, has now begun – a key milestone for the programme.

The new unit, which is the largest speculative commercial development in the borough for a number of years and the only development of its size in the whole of Yorkshire, will provide high-quality manufacturing and logistics space with a BREEAM “Very Good” sustainability rating and forms part of the site’s 17-acre first phase of development.

Funding for the construction of the new unit has come from a £2.7 million loan from the Sheffield City Region (SCR) Joint European Support for Sustainable Investment in City Areas (JESSICA) Fund. It will be the fourth unit to be developed at Gateway 36, which is located by junction 36 of the M1 off the Dearne Valley Parkway, and is designed to meet the region’s rising demand for, and limited supply of, new industrial units.

JF Finnegan are constructing the unit, which is expected to be completed in September 2016. Letting agents for the development are Knight Frank and Gent Visick.

The first three units, totalling 65,000 sq ft were completed in February 2016 and have been pre-let to Barnsley Council, who are now looking to sub-let them to growing Small and Medium-sized businesses in the region. Funding for these three units also came from the SCR JESSICA Fund, which provided a £4.8 million loan to enable infrastructure works and the construction of the units to take place.

The first phase of Gateway 36, will, in total, create more than 450 new jobs in addition to having the potential to add £20m in Gross Value Added to the local economy. All occupiers will have access to comprehensive business support through the council’s experienced investment team, including free guidance on access to finance, recruitment and training, as well as the potential to receive business growth coaching from the nationally-recognised Enterprising Barnsley programme.

Dave Travis, Associate Director of Business Space at Harworth Estates, said: “I am proud of how Gateway 36 is developing and evolving, with the new Helix unit having great prominence in the Dearne Valley Parkway. Steel coming out of the ground should give local businesses confidence that the unit will be completed to time and ready for occupation from later this year.”

Shaun Higginbottom, Business Investment Manager for Enterprising Barnsley – Barnsley Council’s Investment and Development Team – commented: “It is great to see yet more progress in the development of high quality industrial units at the prime Gateway 36 development. Having achieved our highest level of inward investment in seven years, business confidence and interest in Barnsley is strong and we look forward to working with Harworth Estates to attract an occupier to this excellent new facility as well as occupiers to the remaining units.”

Rebecca Schofield, Partner at Knight Frank, said: “Helix is ideally located with immediate access to Junction 36 of the M1 – thereby being well-placed to serve companies covering the South Yorkshire and West Yorkshire markets. The premises will be finished to a high specification, therefore offering the flexibility to cater for Distribution and Manufacturing requirements.”

Paul Mack, Director at Gent Visick, added: “There is currently a significant shortage of available modern commercial units under 100,000 sq. ft in Yorkshire and this situation is particularly acute in South Yorkshire. Helix is in a prime location and given the level of interest even at this early stage, we are confident that a new tenant will be secured sooner rather than later.”