Regeneration company Harworth Estates has forward sold and secured infrastructure funding for the first speculative industrial development in Yorkshire since 2007.
The funding will enable Harworth to begin development next month of 100,000 sq ft of industrial units on seven acres of land at the Advanced Manufacturing Park (AMP) in Rotherham, Yorkshire. The development, called R-evolution @ The AMP, received detailed planning consent in February 2014.
It is located at Harworth’s Waverley site, which is being transformed into Yorkshire’s largest-ever mixed-use development. The 740-acre development comprises an advanced manufacturing park, along with 4,000 homes.
In two separate transactions Harworth has completed a forward-purchase agreement for the first phase of the development with Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council for £4.3 million and secured a £2.7 million loan from the Sheffield City Region Joint European Support for Sustainable Investment in City Areas (JESSICA) Fund.
The forward-purchasing agreement will involve Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council taking ownership of R-evolution’s first phase when it is completed in October 2014. Harworth will be responsible for the delivery and the leasing of the development.
Owen Michaelson of Harworth Estates, said: “In a region where the availability of equivalent-quality stock is reducing, we expect to attract top-quality tenants, which will allow Rotherham to benefit from secure, long-term rental income from the development.”
