News
20-07-2017£5 million industrial units development given the green light
Planning permission has been granted for three new large industrial units in Hebburn. The units, which will be built on the Monkton Business Park, are expected to create over 100 jobs.
Washington-based Hellens Group, which is leading the project to create 55,000 square feet (5,110 square metres) of new industrial space, has received £1.27m from the North East Local Enterprise Partnership’s (LEP’s) Local Growth Fund that is helping a range of industrial and commercial infrastructure projects across the North East LEP area along with loan funding of £1.7M from the North East Investment Fund (NEIF), an evergreen loan fund also administered by the North East LEP
Gavin Cordwell-Smith, chief executive at Hellens Group, said: “The development is fantastic news for South Tyneside and the wider region. These new units will offer growing businesses modern manufacturing space with 6-8m eaves height, and good power availability. We will work with prospective tenants to develop the internal layout of the units and offer cost-competitive rates on long term leases. We are tremendously appreciative of the support for the project that we’ve had from both South Tyneside Council and the North East LEP.”
Work will commence on site in September with a target completion date of September 2018. There will be one large unit of 30,000 square feet and two smaller units of 15,000 and 10,000 square feet although there is the option for prospective businesses to combine the two smaller units into a 25,000 square foot facility. The units will come with their own service yards and parking facilities.
Monkton Business Park has rapidly developed into a key business location in South Tyneside. The 16ha site provides a range of office and industrial facilities on the edge of town, on a landscaped setting which forms part of the Great North Forest. The southern part of the site provides a major new office campus, with more than 18,000m2 of speculatively built new office space, while a range of manufacturing accommodation is provided to the north.
The site is located close to the A184 – between the A19 and A1- in close proximity to Newcastle and Sunderland. The location gives excellent access to the regional road network and is well placed to serve manufacturers with supply chains north and south of the River Tyne. Importantly, it is less than 15 minutes away from the planned International Advanced Manufacturing Pak (IAMP) and Nissan’s Sunderland car plant.
The site is already home to a number of companies including Siemens, Hitachi Construction Machinery Ltd, Variable Message Signs (VMS) Ltd, Ford Component Manufacturing, Clugston Construction and Kier North along with many others.
Leader of South Tyneside Council, Councillor Iain Malcolm, said: “This is excellent news for South Tyneside, with regional funds from the LEP being used in a targeted way to grow the borough’s business prospects. I’m delighted that funding from LEP’s North East Investment Fund and the Local Growth Fund will enable construction of these much-needed units to get underway this year.”
The £270.4m Local Growth Fund, secured as part of the North East Growth Deal, supports the North East LEP’s delivery of the Strategic Economic Plan, which aims to create 100,000 more and better jobs by 2024. The North East Investment Fund was established as an evergreen loan funding to support capital projects that will lead to job creation.
David Land, Chair of the North East LEP’s Investment Panel, said: “Businesses in our region, particularly growing SMEs, are looking for new, state of-the-art facilities. Hellens Group has a strong track record in delivering projects and this scheme ticks many of the boxes in the LEP’s priorities and objectives, including supporting enterprise and private sector business growth; and strengthening transport, connectivity and infrastructure in the region.
By investing and developing in new infrastructure we can help create more and better jobs for the North East.”
Once built, the three units will be retained by Hellens Group and available to let by way of FRI leases.
Over the past five years Hellens Group has invested in excess of £10 million on a programme of new developments across the North East.
The company has already received a number of speculative enquiries from prospective tenants, from a range of manufacturing companies including both SME’s and larger businesses. Businesses wanting further information on the Monkton Business Park units should contact GVA or HTA Real Estate who are acting as joint agents for the development.