£40m office deal is a sign of recovery in Bristol

Work likely to start on new office scheme later this year after deal sealed with developers

Article posted: 19 Jan 2011

A deal agreed earlier this month is being seen as a sign that life is returning to a sector which was one of the worst hit by the recession. Building came to a halt on a prime plot of land in the Temple Quay area of Bristol after the developer, Castlemore Securities, went into administration in 2009. Administrators were appointed and a deal was agreed which saw the new £60m HQ for law firm Burgess Salmon completed.

Temple Quay, which overlooks the Floating Harbour, is seen as one of the key regeneration sites in Bristol but until now there had been no interest in the empty plot of land next to the Burgess Salmon headquarters.

Now a group of investors has invested £5m in the site and development is likely to start later in the year. The space is being viewed as a prime site with foundations for the office and an underground car park having already been completed.

Developers Salmon Harvester Properties have bought the land with the financial backing of National Farmers Union Mutual Insurance. The plan is to build a scheme comprising 140,000 sq ft of office space at the Bristol waterfront site.

The £130m Temple Quay project includes the Burgess Salmon office, the Bristol Eye building, a hotel and several other sites for office blocks. Work is still pressing ahead on the nearby Finzel's Reach development and the first tenants are expected to move in this summer.

The office and residential development, which is one of the largest in the city, was mothballed at the height of the recession. The developers behind the scheme on the former Courage Brewery site are confident that demand for the properties in the city centre is starting to return.

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Posted by Julie