| scottish news WOMEN IN PROPERTY A
North East student has been selected to represent the Women in Property Northern Scotland region for a national UK property award* in London later this year. Stacey Wotherspoon who studies Town and Regional Planning at Dundee University was titled winner of the 2018 student awards on Tuesday night (22nd May) in Aberdeen. The awards evening, sponsored by Scottish property consultants FG Burnett, were held at prestigious office accommodation The Exchange, where students, families, lecturers and guests attended to admire the young property students’ work. Stacey competed against five other regional finalists across a range of built environment disciplines before being announced as the Northern Scotland representative.
2018 WiP Northern Scotland Regional Winner Stacey Wotherspoon
Speaking at the special event to celebrate the Women in Property Northern Scotland Student Awards, branch Chairman Lynn Clark from
Dandara said: “Stacey delivered an extremely professional presentation which left the judges in admiration. Year after year these awards continue to highlight how important it is for women to be part of the property sector, the UK as a whole needs to ensure it has a really strong property and construction industry so ‘future-proofing’ our talent pool is critical. “Women in Property runs a number of different initiatives to encourage girls to explore the really rewarding and diverse range of careers available. For example, the Student Awards, now in their 12th year, which inspire Built Environment students, and engage with universities and employers.
£30 MILLION FUNDING R
eal estate investment firm, Hunter REIM (Hunter), has secured a £30 million finance package from Royal Bank of
Scotland’s Edinburgh Real Estate Finance (REF) team to help expand its UK Retail Unit Trust portfolio. Launched in the summer of 2015, the Hunter UK Retail Trust draws on Hunter’s proven track record of investing in retail opportunities with significant asset management potential. The fund, which invests in well-located retail assets in
thriving town centres, has acquired and sold 29/31 Frederick Street, Edinburgh in a deal worth £7.25 million. The two units, which were sold to a private investor, incorporate 8,891 sq.ft of space and were let to Mitchell & Butlers, who opened their first Edinburgh-based Miller & Carter steak restaurant on the premises. The Hunter UK Retail Unit Trust currently comprises 14 commercial retail assets, with a combined purchase price of £78 million. The fund’s unitholders are comprised of major UK institutions. Mark Hunter, Managing Director of Hunter REIM, said: “The funding from Royal Bank of Scotland will allow us to further expand our UK Retail Unit Trust portfolio, and build on the fantastic momentum we have already achieved over the last three years. “We remain committed to investing in the high street and
believe that Scotland offers superb investment opportunities in particular pockets. Drawing on our expertise, our selective ‘deal by deal’ approach will ensure that we continue to source the best assets for the fund, and we look forward to announcing further deals over the coming year.” Martin McCourt, Relationship Manager at Royal Bank of
Scotland Real Estate Finance, said: “Hunter has an exciting investment strategy to build a UK-wide retail portfolio, and Royal Bank of Scotland is proud to have supported the fund.
18 C A INVERCLYDE INDUSTRIAL PARK
multi-million deal for the purchase of a prominent Inverclyde trade park has been concluded by the property
investment vehicle of James and Sandy Easdale. Sold by Legal & General Group, Cappielow Trade Park in the west of Greenock has been added to the family’s commercial property portfolio in a transaction worth £3.1million. Comprising 15 industrial units extending to 57,342 sq.ft, the trade park is currently occupied by a strong tenant line up including Jewson, Electric Center, Brandon Hire, City Plumbing and FTSE 250 company Howdens Joinery. The property has a net initial yield of 8.50% and was
marketed by JLL (Jones Lang LaSalle). James Easdale said: “We are embarking on a determined
investment drive across a range of commercial and residential property opportunities. Given our existing investments in offices and industrial premises in and around Greenock, this was a deal which made sense for the company and presented a good level of yield with a robust list of tenants occupying the facility. We are pleased to conclude the purchase, aided by the professionalism of both Legal & General and JLL. “We’re currently making good progress with finalising a number of other commercial property purchases and as we have found recently, each successful transaction often leads to a host of new opportunities for us to consider and progress. Whilst our companies are most readily associated with interests in transport and manufacturing sectors, the last 12 to 18 months has witnessed considerable investment in property across the UK and we expect further good news in the coming months.” Cappielow Trade Park sits in East Hamilton Street on the
main arterial route running into Greenock. The M8 motorway is located just seven miles to the east of the site, with Glasgow International Airport reached within 20 minutes and Glasgow city centre within 35 minutes.
DEVELOPMENT WINS AWARD
hris Stewart Group (CSG) has added another award to its growing trophy cabinet, having won the British Council for
Offices (BCO) Refurbished/Recycled Workplace category for its Greenside development at the Scotland awards ceremony. Situated on Edinburgh’s Blenheim Place, which backs onto Calton Hill, the 38,000 sq.ft office building was originally built by Scottish Equitable in 1989 for the firm’s own occupation. CSG acquired the building in 2016 after it had lain empty for a number of years and the refurbishment programme, carried out by GHI Contracts, took just nine months. Arranged over five floors, the building needed modernisation.
The design was for a vibrant and innovative ‘de-furbished’ finish, combining the existing high quality materials with new glazing solutions to maximise the natural daylight flooding in to the building. Greenside now offers a peaceful and contemporary city centre office environment, and in December 2017 the award-winning fintech company Nucleus Financial Ltd moved in taking 50 per cent of the space, while an additional 20 per cent is now under offer. The BCO award, which recognises top quality design and
functionality, is a benchmark for excellence in workplaces. In making the award to Greenside the judges recognised CSG’s vision to create a viable Grade A office space for modern organisations and its innovative approach to both its original funding with the support of the Government-backed SPRUCE initiative, as well as tenant fit-out. Chris Stewart, CEO of Chris Stewart Group, said: “Blenheim House, as it was originally known, was a tired and inefficient office building when we bought it in mid-2016. We knew it had potential and I’m delighted with the completed building, now known as Greenside. This award is testimony to the skill and design of the development team, including our internal project team, ISA, Troup Bywaters and Anders, Will Rudd Davidson and PMP.”
COMMERCIAL PROPERTY MONTHLY 2018
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