PATRIZIA-managed Birchwood Park, the North West’s largest out-of-town business destination, has this month completed its latest phase of new industrial development with an investment of £12m, bringing 170,000 square feet of prime industrial warehouse space to the region.
The development, which began construction in April 2019, features five new units (717 to 721) comprising of two 18,000 sq ft warehouses, a 24,000 sq ft warehouse and larger 50,000 and 58,000 sq ft warehouses, and benefits from some of the best transport links in the North West – following the recent completion of a £5million investment into the road network surrounding the park.
With two units already under offer, this latest warehouse development comes after the successful previous phase of development in 2016, Cavendish Avenue, which saw three new units let within one year. The new multi-million investment responds to the increasing demand for high-grade warehouse space of this size and quality in the surrounding Warrington area.
Martin O’Rourke, Commercial Director at Birchwood Park, comments: “We’re delighted to see the next phase of our Cavendish Warehouse development reach completion, meaning we can plug the gap for much-sought-after industrial space in the area.
“During this project, we’ve ensured we take key learnings from previous experience gained on industrial developments at the Park, and taken on board occupier experience and comments to help us deliver exactly what businesses are looking for. Knowing that previous businesses have extended their offices to provide additional office, showroom or laboratory space, we have anticipated future occupier’s needs by obtaining planning consent in advance should occupiers wish to provide additional office space in the units if required.
“We have also provided the quality of office space that is something you would expect to find in an office development rather than an industrial unit. Occupiers expressed their wishes for better quality office space to help attract and retain the qualified staff they need for their businesses, which is exactly what we did. Occupiers shouldn’t have to put up with poor quality office space just because they work in an industrial unit.”
The units feature a unique combination of high-quality warehouse and office space, and occupiers benefit from being situated within the expertly landscaped surroundings of Birchwood Park. Being located on Birchwood Park also gives companies the benefit of excellent transport links, with easy access to Junction 11 of the M62 and access to the excellent range of amenities on offer such as a gym and all day eat and meet facilities at the EngineRooms.
Martin added: “We’re extremely proud of the benefits we can offer businesses here on the park, from the excellent connectivity to the landscaped surroundings and range of amenities – something completely different from your usual industrial park and of great benefit to businesses looking to improve staff retention and impress clients.
“We look forward to seeing continued growth within the park in this next chapter in our industrial development, and hope to follow similar success to our previous phase of the warehouse project.”
New occupiers from warehouses 717 to 721 can expect to benefit from Enterprise Zone status as Birchwood Park forms an integral part of the Cheshire Science Corridor Enterprise Zone. This is due to the large nuclear engineering and science sector having continued to thrive at the park over the last 20 years, and part of Birchwood Park’s long-term ambitions.
Designed by architects AEW, Caddick Construction were appointed as main contractors with Warrington Martin appointed as project managers and quantity surveyors. BDP Structural were appointed as structural engineers and the planning process was overseen by Turley’s, with Crookes Walker providing advice on M&E and Vectos providing highways advice. B8 Real Estate and JLL are joint agents acting on behalf of Birchwood Park.