Leading UK regeneration company Harworth Group plc has now practically completed its speculative 75,277 sq. ft ‘Helix’ unit in addition to a 4,700 sq. ft drive-thru unit for a KFC & Taco Bell drive-through – marking the latest stage of development for Sheffield City Region’s newest commercial scheme.
JF Finnegan practically completed the 75,000 sq. ft ‘Helix’ unit – the largest speculative commercial development in the Borough for a number of years – on the 5th of September, whilst Trojan Developments completed the fast-food unit on the same day.
‘Helix’ now offers high-quality manufacturing and logistics space with a BREEAM “Very Good” sustainability rating as part of the site’s 17-acre first phase of development and is ready for immediate occupation.
Funding for the construction of the new unit came from a £2.7 million loan from the Sheffield City Region (SCR) Joint European Support for Sustainable Investment in City Areas (JESSICA) Fund. It is the fourth unit to be directly developed and completed 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 acute demand for, and limited supply of, new industrial units.
Letting agents for the development are Knight Frank and Gent Visick, who are actively marketing the Helix unit to a range of national and local companies for immediate leasehold occupation.
Trojan Developments have also practically completed the construction of the 4,700 sq. ft fast-food unit at the front of the development on Harworth’s behalf. This unit will be now be leased by Fieldrose Ltd on a 20-year lease and then occupied by their KFC and Taco Bell franchisees. Both restaurants are expected to be open from October following the completion of fit-out work.
The completion of these units means that just 1.63s of land remains to be developed at the site for roadside retail or leisure uses.
The first phase of Gateway 36 is estimated to 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, said: “I am proud of how Gateway 36 is developing and evolving, with the new Helix unit having great prominence to the Dearne Valley Parkway. The completion of Helix is further proof of Barnsley’s growth and we are confident that we will quickly secure an occupier for the unit, with a list of occupiers already expressing an interest.”
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 to attract an occupier to this excellent new facility as well as occupiers to the remaining R-evolution 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 have been 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 still 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 sustained level of interest from occupiers keen to see its completion, we are confident that a new tenant will be secured sooner rather than later.”