Source: Sheffield Telegraph 01/12/06
St Pauls Developments plc has commenced construction on the massive 50 acre Smithy Wood Business Park at J35 on the M1 motorway in Sheffield. The site is set to house 100,000 sq ft of high specification office space and over 800,000 sq ft of prime industrial space. The site is a combination of ownerships comprising Norfolk Estates, Yorkshire Forward / English Partnership and St Pauls Developments.
Chris Scholey, Managing Director at Renaissance South Yorkshire, the delivery body for Objective 1 funding, said: “The progress at Smithywood is an example of the wider economic success South Yorkshire is enjoying. Projects like Smithywood which qualify for European Union Objective 1 funding, are supporting the development of new businesses and helping existing businesses to innovate and grow. “This leads to the development of new jobs and the economic development of deprived communities in South Yorkshire, additionally the funding is helping to bring forward the development of this and other sites and premises for increased economic activity.”
David Fletcher, Director of Investment & Marketing, Sheffield First for Investment agreed: “Developments such as Smithy wood are crucial for the future growth of the Sheffield City region. To attract inward investment and to be able to support indigenous business growth, a quality property offer is crucial. St Paul’s Developments is a key player in the regional development market and I am sure that smithy Wood will prove to be as successful as their many other schemes.”
Reclamation and levelling of the site began in July by VHE Construction Ltd on behalf of the three landowners.
Smithy Wood is adjacent to J35 of the M1 with easy links to the A616 Trans Pennine Route, Sheffield City Centre, Meadowhall Centre and Chapeltown District Centre.
The location that the site offers, combined with wooded landscape setting of the business park will provide both a fantastic working environment and a readily accessible location for both office and industrial employees.
The flexible open plan office space, which is to be both bespoke and speculatively built, will range from 5,000 sq ft to 10,000 sq ft and will feature assigned parking, VRV Air Conditioning, passenger lifts and full access raised floors.
The industrial warehousing and distribution space, which is also to be bespoke and speculatively built, will range in a variety of unit sizes from 22,500 sq ft to 350,000 sq ft and will be able to be utilised for a wide range of industrial activities. The units will offer good quality office accommodation, secure fenced yards, and generous external circulation and car parking areas.
High levels of interest have already been shown in the development. David Newton, Director for developers St Pauls Developments is particularly pleased: “We have already had an extremely high level of interest in this site, especially for such an early stage of development. I’m sure this is because Smithy Wood is the last, and I believe also the best, Sheffield M1 junction site which is available for immediate development.”
For information on the scheme please contact joint agents Fowler Sandford (0114 275 1441) or CBRE (0113 233 7666).
The former colliery and cokeworks site has been awarded £3 million of Objective 1 assistance by the European Union’s European Regional Development Fund. The Objective 1 regime, which was launched in July 2000, and runs until the end of 2006, brought £1.7 billion to South Yorkshire. This sum includes over £730 million of the European Union’s Structural Fund budget as well as public and private sector resources. Smithy Wood, through the benefit of this assistance, is set to become an integral part in the ongoing renaissance of South Yorkshire.