Muse Developments contributes to Morgan Sindall profits

Urban regeneration and property development company Muse Developments, which has offices in Manchester, London, Leeds and Glasgow, has contributed to half year results for parent company Morgan Sindall, the construction and regeneration group.

Morgan Sindall delivered strong profit growth in the first half of this year, to June 30, with pre-tax profits up 19% to £35.5m on revenues of £1.421bn, slightly down on £1.423bn last year.

The group reported a secured order book of £4.2bn, up 19% from the year end, with the regeneration and development pipeline now £3.3bn, up 6% from the year end position.

Morgan Sindall said it is confident of a strong performance for the second half of 2019.

Urban regeneration specialist, Muse Developments, has had a strong start to the year, moving forward on 36 regeneration schemes across the UK.

Muse currently has 15 projects on site, with a total construction value of £483m, and is expecting to place a further £825m of construction contracts in 2020.

The company’s order book and forward development pipeline now stands at £2.2bn, with Muse being selected as preferred developer on a further three projects this year with a total gross development value of £350m.

Some of Muse’s key developments in the North West include:

• The £650m Salford Central regeneration scheme which is transforming 50 acres of the city’s historic core. Four projects are currently under construction, including office schemes Two New Bailey Square, Riverside House and Three New Bailey, as well as the third phase of residential development at The Slate Yard. The scheme is being delivered by The English Cities Fund – a joint venture between Muse, Homes England and Legal & General.
• City Place in Chester – Muse has recently completed a deal with Vastint B.V to deliver a new 168-bedroom Courtyard by Marriott, as part of the next phase of development. Following on from the success of the previous phase, One City Place, plans are progressing on the next commercial phases of development. The scheme is a partnership with Cheshire West and Chester Council.
• Time Square in Warrington, which Muse is delivering on behalf of Warrington Council. The latest phase of the £142m mixed-use destination is nearing completion and includes a 13-screen, 2,500 seat Cineworld complex, market hall, and new offices for Warrington Borough Council all set around an attractive, high-quality public realm. The Botanist is due to open a new regional flagship restaurant and bar at the scheme before the end of the year.
• Stockport Exchange – construction continues on 2 Stockport Exchange, a 60,000 sq ft office building at the £145m scheme, which is due to complete in Spring 2020. This follows a successful first phase of development which delivered a 1,000-space multi-storey car park, 50,000 sq ft office and extensive public realm and highway improvements.

Matt Crompton, Muse managing director, said: “The first half of 2019 has been positive, with significant progress on many of our key regeneration schemes across the UK.

“We continue to work closely with our partners to create exceptional new places, creating real value for local authorities, occupiers and communities.

“Some of our highlights include four, complementary phases underway at Salford Central, a major pre-let and funding deal at Logic Leeds and residential sales in Brixton, Brentford, Tottenham Hale and Stockton-on-Tees.

“There’s much work still to do, but we’re well-positioned for our full year expectations, as construction progresses well on a number of projects and residential sales continue positively across the country.”