24th Nov 2006 07:01
Grainger Trust PLC24 November 2006 24 November 2006 Grainger Trust plc ("Grainger"/ "Company") GRAINGER TRUST AND DEVELOPMENT SECURITIES ACQUIRE 10-ACRE BIRMINGHAM SITE Grainger Trust and Development Securities are pleased to announce that they havejointly acquired the 10-acre Curzon Park site in Birmingham from the EastsidePartnership for £33.5 million. Grainger and Development Securities will fund the acquisition and subsequentdevelopment jointly, with initial contributions from the two companies' existingresources. The proposed 1.4 million sq ft mixed use development, with a gross developmentvalue of over £350 million, will comprise approximately 800,000 sq ft of Grade Aoffice accommodation, 400,000 sq ft of residential accommodation, a 180-bedhotel and 30,000 sq ft of retail space. It is intended that the joint venturewill obtain planning consent, deliver infrastructure works to the value of £12million and develop the site in several phases. Development Securities willproject manage the planning, infrastructure and commercial phases with Graingerproject managing the residential component. Located within Birmingham's Eastside, the proposed high-quality mixed usedevelopment of offices, together with residential, retail and leisure elements,will support Birmingham City Council's aspirations for the site. It isanticipated that outline planning consent for Curzon Park should be obtained bysummer 2007 and that construction will start on site in late 2007/early 2008.The overall development programme is expected to take up to eight years. Commenting on the acquisition, Julian Barwick, joint Managing Director ofDevelopment Securities, said: "We are delighted to have acquired this key 10-acre site in the centre ofBritain's second city in partnership with Grainger. We are also looking forwardto working jointly alongside Birmingham City Council on our proposals, whichwill deliver outstanding benefits for the local community." Richard Exley, Director of Development at Grainger, said: "This acquisition enables us to meet our shared aspirations for our jointventure; to deliver large-scale, mixed-use schemes in first-rate locations. Weanticipate furthering our partnership with Development Securities on similarschemes in the future." Grainger Trust and Development Securities were advised by CBRE and the EastsidePartnership was advised by Strutt & Parker and Savills. For further information, please contact: Grainger Trust:Andrew Cunningham/Richard Exley+44(0)20 7795 4700 Development Securities:Julian Barwick+44(0)20 7828 4777 Financial Dynamics (for Grainger):Stephanie Highett/Dido Laurimore/Jamie Robertson+44(0) 20 7831 3113 The Communication Group plc (for Development Securities):Alison Howard44 (0) 20 7630 1411 This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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