Enterprise M3 Commercial Property Market Study Winchester Commercial Agents Workshop. Chris Paddock Regeneris Consulting

Transcription

1 Enterprise M3 Commercial Property Market Study Winchester Commercial Agents Workshop Chris Paddock Regeneris Consulting

2 Our Brief: Update 2013 assessment: Revisit market areas Assess demand and supply of commercial floorspace Introduction Understand requirements of priority sectors Identify key issues and potential interventions for the LEP Purpose of session: Test findings of data analysis Agree priorities Identify interventions (sites, transport investments, other barriers to growth)

3 Original Market Areas Central Hampshire Enterprise Zone New Forest

4 Office rents, Deals

5 Proposed Market Areas New Forest Winchester town is key office location Highly skilled population, high quality of life, strong heritage assets Excellent transport connections Winchester north, south and east Current dependence on public sector employment Some high profile employers, but large outflows of skilled workers to Southampton East Hampshire Predominantly industrial market with small office markets in Alton and Petersfield Currently serves local SMEs with few large investors Opportunity at Whitehill & Bordon Very small commercial property market Poor connectivity (physical and digital) Lack of developable land Property market serves local SMEs, with few large investors

6 Economic Trends After a slow recovery from the economic downturn, all areas have seen jobs growth since 2012 Winchester East Hants New Forest Growth Sectors Hotels and Restaurants (+1,400) ICT (+800) Hotels and Restaurants (+900) Professional Services (+500) Hotels and Restaurants (+900) Professional Services (+500) Declining Sectors Public Sector (-2,300) Manufacturing (-300) Manufacturing (-400) ICT (-300) Real Estate (-1,500) Health and Social Work (-400)

7 LEP Priority Sectors Employment in Priority Sectors, 2014 Not a key location relative to other market areas, but still an important source of jobs % Growth in Prof & Fin Services Businesses, % 11% 10% C. 90% micro-businesses tend to look for flexible and affordable space High rates of business starts in professional and financial services potential demand for starter units and coworking Not an established location for large office occupiers but strong potential in Winchester

8 Business Needs Winchester East Hampshire New Forest 71% of businesses say it is difficult to find suitable commercial property Key issues were lack of availability and the price of business accommodation Most businesses able to find sites for expansion, but some are looking outside the district due to insufficient or poor quality sites Very limited provision for small, start-up businesses Premises with superfast broadband is the key priority for businesses Also high demand for easy in/easy out and starter offices in the district Source: Winchester Workspace Demand Study Source: East Hants ELR (Business Survey) Source: New Forest Business Needs Survey

9 Office Take-up Number of deals, Most activity in Winchester, but much smaller market than other parts of LEP (3 areas combined represent 12% of all deals in LEP area) Size of deals, Vast majority of demand is for small floorplates (below 1,000 sq ft), particularly in Winchester city centre

10 Office Availability Vacant Office Space c. 5% c. 9% c. 2% Very little choice available to potential investors, with vacancy rates below 10% in each sub-area Virtually no Grade A office space currently vacant Very few units over 5,000 sq ft Large sites with planning permission Winchester Chilcomb Park (90,000 sq ft available for D&B) East Hampshire 380,000 sq ft at Whitehill and Bordon EZ New Forest 200,000 sq ft mixed use development permitted at Forest Gate (a large proportion built out already) Limited supply in the pipeline, other than opportunity at Whitehill & Bordon

11 Permitted Development Rights Loss of office floor space to residential putting further pressure on supply of office space in each market area Winchester 34 prior notifications between May 2013 and Oct of these in Winchester town centre If implemented, would result in loss of 8,000 sq m of B1a floorspace District lost 3,000 sq m of office space to residential in 2015 New Forest Loss of 3,400 sq m of office space to residential since 2013 Includes high quality office accommodation occupied by businesses at the time Concerns that this will have significant impact on supply and put pressure on existing businesses to vacate premises

12 Potential Future Supply Winchester East Hampshire New Forest Most allocations in south of district (outside EM3 LEP) Bushfield Camp is main exception but unlikely to be delivered in short term Station approach provides main opportunity to deliver town centre offices, but some challenges for delivery Whitehill & Bordon site the vast majority of future supply Long term proposition for offices may have more market appeal for industrial in the short term C. 15 Ha of employment land available in Ringwood/Fordingbridge area Should be sufficient to meet demand

13 Industrial Space - Warehouses Warehouse Space, 2008 Limited stock of factory and warehouse space in any of the market areas Main concentrations all lie to the south, along M27 corridor and in Waterside area of New Forest Main locations within EM3 area are in East Hampshire (Alton, Petersfield and surrounding area) but mostly small scale

14 Industrial Space - Take-up All areas seen growth in demand for industrial space East Hants is most active market, but mostly servicing local SMEs Transport connections of Winchester market area make this a desirable location for B8, but shortage of supply is limiting take-up Majority of demand for small units (<5,000 sq ft) Low number of deals for larger units reflects shortage of supply of large warehouses

15 Industrial Availability c. 7% Very little availability in New Forest or Winchester c. 3% c. 4% Vast majority of vacant space older and lower grade, and small units Major developments in pipeline are outside LEP area (eg Fawley Power Station) Shortage of large sites and little appetite among councils to develop large industrial areas within EM3 area Whitehill & Bordon presents opportunity to deliver high quality industrial accommodation

16 Shortage of office space in Winchester city centre Priorities Need for flexible and affordable space for start-ups and micro-businesses (enterprise centres, co-working, short leases) Supporting the sustainable development of Whitehill & Bordon Extending superfast broadband coverage for key employment areas

17 Key Questions for Discussion 1. Are the findings correct and have we identified the right priorities? 2. What effect are permitted development rights having on key locations and what can be done about it? 3. What are the key interventions that need to take place for each market area?