The sites, totalling nine acres of land, are the first to be acquired by a recently formed joint venture between industrial developer and asset manager Chancerygate and real estate firm Hines.
In Cheltenham, the JV will speculatively build 15 units totalling 102,000 sq ft on a 4.9-acre site on the Kingsditch trading estate. The development’s gross development value (GDV) is approximately £16m.
The 4.1-acre Tonbridge site is on Vale Road and the proposed scheme will comprise 14 industrial units across 100,000 sq ft. The site is scheduled for occupation in 2020 and is expected to have a GDV of more than £20m.
Chancerygate managing director Richard Bains said: “Acquiring these sites is an important milestone in our partnership with Hines – and the first of many more to come. This is a trusted partnership and we’re already reaping the rewards of working together.
“We have a strong track record in identifying well connected, strategic locations, often in areas that have seen a shortage of new industrial schemes, and we’re showing that this approach will also succeed through our JV model. Tonbridge has been woefully undersupplied with good quality developments and our scheme will be the town’s biggest for decades. Likewise, Kingsditch in Cheltenham is a prime destination for retailers and their customers, which fully supports our development strategy. We look forward to making more announcements on further acquisitions soon.”
Hines senior managing director Ross Blair added: “At the time of establishing our joint venture, we said we would make decisions at speed and grow a pipeline quickly. With these first site purchases, we’ve absolutely done that. Industrial developments are a vital asset class in Hines’ diversification and we’re confident investors will see rewards from the joint venture.”
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