Tritax Big Box gets green light for new distribution centre – The UK-focused logistics investor, Tritax Big Box REIT (BBOX), has received planning permission for the development of a new regional distribution centre (RDC) at Symmetry Park, Biggleswade. The facility has been pre-let to The Co-op Food Group, part of The Co-operative Group.
Co-Op Group to take out 20 year lease
This represents the first pre-let development from the db Symmetry strategic land portfolio acquired by BBOX in February 2019. You can read more about the db Symmetry acquisition here.
The development will comprise a new purpose-built RDC with a gross internal floor area of 661,000 square feet on a site of about 50 acres. This RDC, which also includes office space as well as parking and service yards, will support The Co-op’s investment programme as it looks to further increase its presence in London, the South and the South East. The property will also receive significant capital investment by the occupier, to include frozen, chilled and food storage zones within the RDC.
Construction is expected to be complete by the first quarter of 2021, at which point the The Co-op will take up a new 20-year lease, subject to five yearly upward-only rent reviews indexed to the retail prices index (collared at 2% per annum and capped at 4% per annum). It is anticipated that construction will commence towards the end of 2019.
Colin Godfrey, partner of Tritax, had this to say: “I am delighted to announce that full planning consent has been received for our first pre-let development transaction since we acquired the db Symmetry strategic UK land portfolio in February this year. This foundation asset, which has recently secured full planning, will be a prime big box regional distribution centre let on a long 20-year lease to a well-known tenant covenant.
The property, which will benefit from significant capital investment in the fit-out, will create a wide range of jobs locally and play an important role in The Co-op Food Group’s UK supply chain, as it expands further into London and the South East. Strategically positioned in an increasingly important logistics location with excellent transport infrastructure and a strong labour supply, we look forward to delivering this high-quality pre-let development asset for an existing customer of Tritax Big Box.”
BBOX: Tritax Big Box gets green light for new distribution centre