Tritax Big Box gets outline planning consent for massive Kettering development
Tritax Big Box REIT announced on Tuesday that outline planning consent has been obtained for up to 2.31 million square feet of high-quality logistics space at Symmetry Park in Kettering.
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The FTSE 250 company said it represented the second new development from the db Symmetry strategic land portfolio it acquired in February.
It said the development site extended to a total of 136 acres, and was one of the few sites in the East Midlands that could accommodate a single logistics asset of more than one million square feet.
The site had “excellent” road connectivity, the board explained, located directly alongside the A14 ‘trans-European’ freight route.
It would also deliver the first phase of the Isham bypass, which would see the joining and dualling of the A509 from junction nine of the A14 to the site entrance, helping the area to become an “increasingly important” UK distribution location.
Tritax said the area benefitted from an “appropriately skilled and flexible” labour supply within close proximity, with the new logistics park set to be a “major contributor” towards Kettering's planned economic growth, with the potential to create up to 2,800 jobs.
The company currently held the land under option, and would now begin committing the initial capital, to be drawn down in phases, in order to ready the site for promotion on a pre-let development basis.
Once fully developed, the site ahd the potential to deliver a return on acquisition cost within the company's target range of 7% to 8%.
“We are pleased to have secured outline planning consent for this significant, well-located logistics development scheme at Symmetry Park, Kettering,” said Tritax partner Colin Godfrey.
“This represents the second planning success from the db Symmetry portfolio acquired by the company in February 2019, following on from the 660,000 square feet detailed planning consent secured on behalf of The Co-op Food Group at Biggleswade.”
Godfrey said the company had already started work on the planning application for the associated infrastructure and the first phase of development, with the board “looking forward” to continuing to engage with the local community as its proposals progressed.
“This new logistics park has the potential to provide an attractive yield on cost within our target range and, once fully developed, will bring significant employment opportunities and strengthen further the area's economic growth.”