Omega Warrington Ltd (OWL) has signed a deal that will bring the first major occupier to Omega North in Warrington.
Brakes will take almost a quarter of Omega North, the 32 ha (80-acres) developable part of the 233 ha (575-acres), high profile, £1bn mixed-use development opportunity in Warrington. The deal will establish hundreds of jobs in Warrington.
The grocery & fresh food suppliers has taken a pre-let of 18,500sq m (200,000 sq ft) of logistics space on Omega North that has been funded by the Northern Ireland Local Government Offices’ Superannuation Committee (NILGOSC), clients of LaSalle Investment Management. OWL is a joint venture between Miller Developments and KUC Properties Ltd, in partnership with the HCA and supported by Warrington Borough Council (WBC).
Works to facilitate the new warehouse have commenced, central to which is an infrastructure contract totalling £7m for an access road and associated services that will open up Omega North for further industrial/ logistics occupiers.
The Homes and Communities Agency, Omega landowner and OWL partner, invested £42 million in the new junction 8 of the M62 and associated carriage works in 2002 and has been working closely with OWL, the Council and the Cheshire and Warrington LEP to unlock the scheme.
Deborah McLaughlin, North West Executive Director at the HCA said: “It’s fantastic that through successful partnership working, we’ve signed up Omega North’s first major occupier. Local people will benefit from a significant number of new jobs and that's good news for us all.
"We know that there is strong demand for commercial space at Omega; the site is highly attractive and well located and we are delighted by the level of interest so far that should translate into even more employment opportunities, supporting the economic growth of Warrington."
Andrew Sutherland, joint Managing Director of Miller Developments, a partner of Omega Warrington Ltd (OWL), commented: “After months of speculation, we are delighted to confirm the occupier and investment deals for Brakes at Omega North. OWL, the HCA and WBC, have been working hard to find solutions that would ensure development could go ahead quickly.
“We have embraced a strategy of competitive freehold and leasehold packages, fast track build solutions and infrastructure delivery through, and in tandem with, B8 buildings; at a time of shortage of high quality logistics space in the North West. Omega North is now a leading destination and very much open for business. This latest announcement is very much testament to that.”
Nick Smart, Brakes Supply Chain Director, said: “The decision to build this new site in Warrington fits with our long-term strategy to meet our growth projections by investing in our network, ensuring that we are in a healthy position to meet growing demand in the North West and continuing to provide our customers with the market-leading levels of service they have come to expect from Brakes. The new site will be home to a state of the art multi-temperature food service distribution centre, enabling us to operate a full-service distribution network to service the area from Warrington.”
The announcement comes only a short time after a Reserved Matters planning application for the Brakes building was approved by Warrington Borough Council.
Councillor Terry O’Neill, Leader of Warrington Borough Council commented: “This is brilliant news for the town and the announcement will kick start the Omega development that will become one of the North West’s largest and most strategically important business sites. Thousands of jobs will be created by the scheme and the development will act as a catalyst for the continued economic prosperity of the town and the wider region. We’ve worked closely with Miller and other partners to ensure the plans will create opportunities for local people and businesses.
“Omega is a critical part of 'Warrington Means Business' - the Council and Warrington & Co's ambitious business growth programme; the Brakes development shows we are on track for delivery and are open for business and investment".
Practical completion for the Brakes premises and associated infrastructure is scheduled for August 2013. Chetwoods is the architect and Jones Lang LaSalle and GVA are joint letting/funding agents.