Shrewsbury shopping centres sold in £61m deal
THREE Shropshire shopping centres have been bought out of receivership in a deal worth £61m – the largest of its kind in the Midlands this year so far.
The Darwin, Pride Hill and Riverside Shopping Centres dominate Shrewsbury’s retail offering. The county town has a total of 1,070,000 sq ft of retail space, with these three properties providing approximately 43% of the town’s entire retail space.
Now owned by UK Commercial Property Trust, the trio of linked shopping centres comprise 123 retail units on a site of approximately 6.15 acres.
GVA Grimley in Birmingham was appointed LPA Receiver in September 2009 when previous owners Protego’s UK Actively Managed Shopping Centre Fund lost control of the properties.
The LPA Receiver appointment was made by London-based Hatfield Phillips – the special servicer to the loan – which was originally provided by Lehman Brothers in 2006.
Greg Judd, director of GVA Grimley, head of the firm’s Midlands Corporate Recovery team and LPA Receiver for Shrewsbury Shopping Centres said: “We are delighted to have completed this major transaction within six months of being appointed as the LPA Receiver.
“Shrewsbury is a vibrant county town and the trio of centres is very popular, however, the properties were purchased at the height of the market in 2006 and the level of debt was unable to continue to be serviced.”
He said that during the last decade, the number of large shopping centres bought for high values was significant, with many deals having taken place at the height of the market.
The firm is also LPA Receiver for a number of other major shopping centres across the country, such as Merseyway Shopping Centre in Stockport, Swinton Shopping Centre near Manchester, Cherry Tree Shopping Centre in Wallasey and the Cannock Shopping Centre in Staffordshire.
“While the sale of Shrewsbury Shopping Centre currently represents the largest deal out of receivership in the Midlands during 2010, there will be more transactions to follow, as the property market deals with the effects of a painful recession,” added Mr Judd.
GVA Grimley secured the LPA Receiver appointment due to the size, track record and experience of its 15-strong Midlands Corporate Recovery team.
The instruction involved a multi-disciplinary team from GVA Grimley’s Midlands office, located in Brindleyplace in Birmingham. The firm’s Property Management team were engaged over the six month transaction period.
Key occupiers at Darwin, Pride Hill and Riverside Shopping Centres include Marks & Spencer, TK Maxx, H&M, Currys Digital, Next, New Look, Wilkinson, TJ Hughes and Somerfield. 86% of the current rental income is secured to national multiple retailers.
