Aberdeen-based Knight Property Group is on target to complete construction and letting at its Prospect Park development in Westhill by summer 2013 after being granted planning consent for its fourth and final pavilion at the site which will, upon completion, total 116,000 sq ft and represent a site development phase of 14 months.
Knight’s Prospect Park development is anchored by two substantial pre-lets with the largest pavilion set to be occupied by Bibby Offshore in April 2013. Their new headquarters is at an advanced construction stage and will total 52,000 sq ft over four floors when complete. Amongst other facilities, it will include a gymnasium and staff canteen on the top floor with views to Kings Hill. The pre-let deal was struck in December of last year on the basis of a lengthy lease and rents of £20 sq ft.
The second anchor tenant who will occupy 22,000 sq ft of offices over four floors in February 2013 is serviced office provider Bluesky Business Space which has committed to a 15 year lease at a rental of £21.50 sq ft. Bluesky is relocating from smaller offices within Knight’s Westpoint development due to demand for its services and the success of its offering. It is understood the current offices leased to Bluesky at 12,572 sq ft are already under offer.
The third offering at Prospect Park, a three storey office of 18,785 sq ft is due for completion in February 2013 and has already gone under offer with substantial interest in securing one of only a handful of speculative office developments within the city and its boundaries.
Knight will now be moving forward with the development of its fourth and final pavilion totalling 23,500 sq ft within the Prospect Park development.
James Barrack, chairman and managing director of Knight Property Group, said: “Our investment in the Prospect Park development was a bold one but has proved successful on the back of foreseeing the demand in the market for our product and the lack of available stock. Westhill is a key location for companies setting up or relocating in the North East or expanding their bases and it has been proved lucky for us.
“We have achieved strong rentals within the new development to underpin the specification and have seen rents rise steadily over the period from an initial £18 per sq ft four years ago to where we see them today.
“The area, SURF City as it is also known locally, was recently named by Aberdeenshire Council as The Global Centre of Excellence in Subsea Engineering and now with the go ahead for the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route it will attract even more business and interest.
“We currently have several other developments either on site, in the planning system or at the design stage that will potentially bring an additional 230,000sq ft of accommodation to businesses already in the area or hoping to establish their businesses here,” he continued.
The commercial property specialists have previously developed seven properties at its Westpoint Business Park scheme which completed in July of this year. The last office development was pre-let to Kongsberg Maritime at £19 per sq ft.
The Westpoint development scheme provided a total of 165,000 sq ft of space over six office pavilions and a multi storey car park creating an investment totalling some £40 million for the entire site.
Other successful large-scale developments completed by Knight Property Group in the area include Minto Commercial Park in Altens and Kirkhill Commercial Park in Dyce.
Westhill is known in the energy industry as SURF City due to the concentration of subsea expertise in the area. The term, SURF, is an abbreviation of the main components of the industry – subsea umbilicals, risers and flowlines, all of which form a major part of the work undertaken at Westhill.
Knight Property Group was established in Aberdeen, Scotland in 1987 and provides a complete range of property investment and development services.
The company has extensive experience in the design and build of new facilities and the refurbishment and upgrading of existing properties.