Plans have been submitted to speculatively build 270,000 sq ft of Grade A urban logistics space on a former automotive component manufacturing site in Erdington, Birmingham.
The development is a joint venture (JV) between developer Chancerygate and specialist sustainable and impact investor Bridge Fund Management. The partners intend to develop a scheme comprising 22 leasehold units ranging from 4,500 sq ft to 60,000 sq ft.
Called Torque, the proposed development will be located on Chester Road in Erdington, on the outskirts of Birmingham city centre and in close proximity to both junction 5 and 6 of the M6. It has a projected gross development value of £77m.
Neighbouring occupiers to the proposed development include Jaguar Land Rover, Volvo and Selco Builders Warehouse, as well as further retail and industrial parks.
Chancerygate and Bridges are also in discussions with two parties on the sale of two prominent plots of land to the front of the estate.
All units at Torque will be fitted with electric vehicle charging points and solar panels on their roofs, which will provide occupiers with green energy on an affordable basis.
The units are being constructed from high-performance building materials to reduce CO2 emissions and occupier operation costs. The scheme is targeting EPC A+ and a BREEAM Excellent rating as a minimum.
Chancerygate development manager Rob Watts, who is based in the company’s Birmingham office, said: “There is unsatisfied demand from SME occupiers in Birmingham and across the West Midlands for high quality, sustainable urban logistics units in prime locations.
“Torque will aim to satisfy this through providing flexibly sized, high specification space on what is regarded as one of the city’s most prominent sites.
“Our proposed plans will regenerate a redundant building into new Grade A accommodation which will be of interest to a range of prospective occupiers. We look forward to working with Birmingham City Council and stakeholders to bring forward this much needed highly specified development.”
Founded in 1995, Chancerygate is the UK’s largest urban logistics property developer and asset manager and the only one operating nationwide. It currently has around 1.16m sq ft of urban logistics space under construction or ready for development across ten sites ranging from Edinburgh to Croydon.
Bridges is a specialist sustainable and impact investor. Its property funds focus on sectors that are well placed to benefit from the transition to a more sustainable and inclusive economy, including healthcare, lower-cost housing and sustainable logistics.
Guy Bowden, partner at Bridges Fund Management, said: “We hope to transform this disused building into high-quality, highly sustainable logistics units that can support new jobs and boost the local economy. Erdington is an ideal location for this kind of development, and we believe these units will be attractive to a wide variety of SME occupiers.
“Our focus on sustainability is key to this: it enables us to offer occupiers lower running costs – thanks to smart design and on-site renewables – while also helping them achieve their own ESG goals through lower emissions.”
Agents for Torque are Knight Frank and Gerald Eve.
