Page 9 - Caxtons KPMR 2021

Lettings
Date
Location
Landlord
Tenant
Floorspace ft2
Rent (pa)
Lease term
Agent
Nov ’20
Crossways Point 15, Crossways Business Park, Dartford
CCLA
KT Heating
17,957
£23.00 psf
10 yrs
Altus
Jun ’21
Rift House, Eureka Park, Ashford
Rift Ltd
E.D.F.
10,313
£221,000 plus premium
Balance of 7 year lease
Stafford Perkins
Feb ’21
11, Tower View, Kings Hill
Kings Hill Unit Trust
Orbit Group
2,740 IPMS3
Confidential
Confidential
Altus, Knight Frank, Hanover Green
The Hub at Kent Science Park, Sittingbourne.
At Kent Medical Campus the new Innovation Centre is nearing completion, providing 3,437m2 (37,000ft2) of workspace for SMEs in the life science, healthcare and med- tech sectors. The 30 acre campus, with current occupiers including KIMS and Cygnet Health Care, has the potential to develop up to 98,000m2 (1,000,000 ft2) of floorspace.
Activity in Kings Hill over the last 12 months provides a positive indication of the intentions of businesses towards their future office requirements in the wake of the pandemic. By the end of July, the park had seen 1,205m2 (12,978ft2) of transactions involving four tenants, with further space under offer following the easing of restrictions.
The agreed lettings include 255m2 (2,740 ft2) at 11 Tower View to Orbit Group, 147m2 (1,581ft2) at 35 Kings Hill A venue to AXA Insurance UK Plc, 495m2 (5,307 ft2) in
2 Kings Hill Avenue to Teligent Ltd and 311ft2 (3,350 ft2) in 30 Tower View to British Assessment Bureau. Watchfinder took a lease of 1,394m2 (15,000ft2) in 25 KHA, a building outside the Kings Hill Unit Trust Portfolio, a welcome addition to the business park, along with Rolex. Kings
Hill Unit Trust’s newly refurbished 18 Kings Hill Avenue, providing 3,386m2 (36,443ft2), has already attracted interest and at the time of going to print 1,050m2 (11,300ft2) is under offer.
Operating with few voids there has been relatively little activity at Crossways Business Park, Dartford, following a number of small lettings absorbing vacant space in 2020. At Gillingham Business Park, available floorspace on the park remains limited.
Eureka Park, Ashford, which comprises over 27,871m2 (300,000ft2) saw Bizspace take occupation of The Cobalt Building, following the completion of the purpose built property in February at 1600 Eureka Park. The space provides 73 offices ranging from 16-39m2 (170-420ft2), with the potential to accommodate up to 250 employees. This has proved timely as companies review their occupational strategies. The Park has consent for a further
100,000m2 (1.2m ft2) Grade A office space, with pre let opportunities of 1,858-4,645m2 (20-50,000ft2) or outright plot sales.
At Eurocentre Business Park, Faversham, the 2,230m2 (24,000ft2) Saphir House constructed by George Wilson Developments in 2010, was redeveloped following the failure of the tenant, Simply Scuba, during the lockdown period. The developer took back ownership of the property, creating two floors of office space with ground floor retail. The building completed in April and is fully let with ten tenants, including Screwfix, who have taken the 464m2 (5,000ft2) ground floor.
Investment volumes have slowed further over the last 12 months, with Kent seeing no major science and business park transactions. Anchor Boulevard, comprising 1,386m2 (14,916ft2) on Crossways Business Park, let to Westbury Homes until 2023, but sub let to three tenants, was bought for £3.1m (NIY 9.29%) in March by Craigard. The vendor was Aberdeen Standard.
Technology and life sciences have demonstrated resilience to the challenges presented by the pandemic and have come to the fore in the eyes of policymakers and investors alike. Looking ahead, it is likely these sectors will increasingly drive floorspace demand across the county’s parks. Kent’s affordability advantage will be important but attracting and retaining high skilled workers will be more so. This will rely on the overall package the county has to offer in terms of lifestyle and housing as well as the quality business space that Kent’s parks are so well equipped to deliver.
Kent Property Market Report 2021 07
CREDIT: RICHARD BAILEY/C AND W ARCHITECTS