Law firm doubles Leeds presence

EVANS Property Group’s £5m investment into its Minerva office building in central Leeds has attracted its first new occupier with a law firm signing a ten year lease for 7,500 sq ft, doubling its office size in the city.

Having entered the Yorkshire market in 2012 in the midst of the recession, Gateley’s team has quadrupled in size, providing clients with expertise across corporate, corporate recovery, residential development and commercial dispute resolution.

The firm, which has 25 members of staff in Leeds, is relocating from Toronto Square where it will sub-let its 3,880 sq ft office.

The newly refurbished Minerva was launched by Evans Property Group this summer and the 30,568 sq ft offices were hailed by the property community as a welcome addition to the Leeds office market where supply is at an all-time low.

Gateley will occupy the whole of the ninth floor and half of the eighth, taking a total 7,500 sq ft of offices within the building.

Alan Syers, portfolio director at Evans Property Group, said: “To have secured such a high profile occupier for Minerva so soon after the launch of the building is fantastic news and demonstrates the current appetite within the Leeds market for well-positioned offices of the highest quality that are immediately available. We are incredibly proud of what we have achieved with the transformation of Minerva and are confident that we will be welcoming more occupiers to the building in due course.”

William Ballmann, corporate recovery partner and head of Gateley’s Leeds office, added: “We are delighted to have secured the lease at Minerva. Since 2012, the Leeds office has gone from strength to strength and the move will accommodate significant additional growth. Over the past twelve months, the Residential Development team has doubled in size, including the appointment of a new partner. We have also made key hires and promotions across each of our other service offerings.”

Minerva forms the first phase of Evans’ multi-million pound investment into the Bond Court area of Leeds City Centre which will include the complete refurbishment of neighbouring Capitol House to deliver a further 20,000 sq ft of new office accommodation, extensive public realm works in Bond Court itself and the development of a 9 storey, 90 bed 4 star Dakota hotel which will transform the prominent former ‘stacker’ car park fronting both Greek Street and Bond Court.

Planning for the new hotel was granted to Evans in February this year and demolition is set to start in the forthcoming weeks.

CBRE and JLL are joint agents on Minerva and Gateley was represented by Eddisons.