E.on deal boosts Nottingham office market
Miller Birch Developments has agreed a deal with E.on for a new 105,000 sq ft office building in Nottingham – a transaction viewed by many as the key deal of the year in the market for office space in the city.
JLL says its Nottingham office, acting for Miller Birch, has successfully brokered a pre-let to E.on for the design-and-build scheme. JLL partner Matthew Smith says this is one of the largest office lettings ever to take place in Nottingham and it has set a record rent level.
Earlier this month DTZ said E.on’s expected move to a site on Burton Street would be the highlight of the year for the market for office space in Nottingham. The site is currently occupied by the city council’s treasury – but not for much longer. The treasury staff are to move out at the end of August to the council’s new Loxley House headquarters.
The new nine-story office building will be the first in the city centre to achieve a BREEAM Excellent rating, using the latest technology to cut carbon emissions. It is due to be completed in April 2012 and will become the energy group’s national contact centre for its retail business, housing 800 staff.
DTZ in its Q2 2010 commentary on the Nottingham office market said that there had been a significant rise in Grade A take-up during the second quarter, with space mostly taken up by smaller, local companies. It said occupiers on the whole had remained cautious. Average prime headline rent for Nottingham in Q2 was £17.50 per sq ft, DTZ said, adding that it expected this figure to remain steady, while some secondary rents had dropped sharply and were now nearer £10 per sq ft.
There are a lot of companies in Nottingham such as eON. Egg, Experian, Boots – all big employers adding to opportunities in the area. Its good that companies are choosing Nottingham as a base for their activities but lets hope they add more interesting jobs than call centres!