230-acre site acquired to expand flagship business park development
A 230-acre site has been acquired in East Yorkshire to expand a flagship business park, which will then become one of the biggest in Yorkshire with the potential to employ more than 5,000 people.
The multi-million pound deal at Melton Park is the largest ever land purchase for commercial property developer Wykeland Group. The deal includes 100 acres of development land, 95 acres of farmland and 35 acres of woodland, purchased from Birmingham-based property company St Modwen.
Wykeland plans to merge the development land with its neighbouring Meltonwest mixed-use business park, to create a 200-acre commercial cluster and meet strong demand from blue chip brands to join the community of businesses based there.
It will create one of Yorkshire and the Humber’s largest business parks, ultimately offering a total of 2.75m sq ft of space with an end value of more than £200m and an employment potential of over 5,000 jobs.
Meltonwest already has 700,000 sq ft of completed development, with around 1,100 people employed at the site. Leading businesses located at Meltonwest include Heron Foods, generator manufacturer Allam Marine, shower maker Kohler Mira and Needlers
Plans were also recently submitted to East Riding of Yorkshire Council by Wykeland and Lister Group for a £10m, next-generation Mercedes-Benz dealership for Listers at Meltonwest.
Wykeland Managing Director Dominic Gibbons said: “This is our largest ever acquisition in terms of land area, so it’s a milestone deal for the business.
“The potential of Melton Park has been known to us for many years, so we are delighted that we have now been able to add it to our growing development pipeline.
“This acquisition creates a unique opportunity to capitalise on the success of Meltonwest and demonstrates our strong confidence in the region’s economy, particularly the manufacturing, warehousing and distribution sectors, for which the Melton site is ideal.
“We aim to develop the site over the next decade and we’re looking at the potential for some speculative development in 2019.”
The development land is zoned for industrial, manufacturing, warehousing and distribution uses and offers investors a prime location on the A63, a major route linking Hull and the Humber ports with West, South and North Yorkshire and the national motorway network, via the M62.
The presence of the woodland, which includes a section of the Wolds Way, offers the potential for recreational uses being incorporated within development of the site.
Gibbons added: “Our intention is to work with partners to enhance the woodland area and create opportunities for workers across the expanded business park to use it for leisure and exercise, supporting the efforts of businesses based on site to promote employee wellbeing.”
The Melton Park purchase takes the value of Wykeland’s development pipeline across Yorkshire and the Humber to almost £400m as the business continues to deliver some of the region’s most significant schemes. Since 2010 Wykeland has developed 1.75m sq ft of commercial space, now occupied by around 4,250 people, at least 1,500 of them in newly-created jobs.
Wykeland’s current projects range from major urban regeneration schemes to some of the region’s most prestigious business parks.
