Tritax Symmetry secures option on massive West Yorkshire site

Tritax Symmetry has signed a 12 year Option, subject to planning, on a 184 acre site at South Elmsall near Wakefield in West Yorkshire, which could provide up to three million sq ft of warehousing space.

The site, which sits within the greenbelt, has been under review as part of initial draft consultation of Wakefield Council’s Local Plan 2036.

As part of its supporting statement to the council, Tritax Symmetry’s planning agent Turley stated: “There is a requirement for Wakefield to identify more land capable of providing for large scale distribution buildings within the District and as such the next plan period presents the best opportunity to do this.

“The principle of the first draft plan is welcomed in this respect and the extent and commitment to releasing Green Belt land for employment development is to be commended.

“The opportunities for new land releases in less sensitive locations are limited and if the market needs are not met then the opportunities to secure major occupiers will be lost to competing city regions.

“The proposed release of land at Wrangbrook Lane and Doncaster Road presents one of the most suitable and sustainable sites within Wakefield to accommodate the increasing market requirement for large scale distribution buildings and compliments the provision of large scale releases in the heart of the market on the M62 corridor.

“This would offer genuine choice of location and help to open up the A1M corridor to more development opportunities.”

The announcement of the Option came in a presentation to analysts and shareholders by Tritax Big Box REIT today. The presentation also noted that Tritax Symmetry – the result of the recent acquisition of dbSymmetry – is progressing some four million sq ft of planning applications in addition to the 2.3 million sq ft planning consent achieved at Kettering in April. A further 1.7 million sq ft of new planning applications is expected to be submitted in the near term.

The company has completed construction of around 2.4 million sq ft of space since February 2019 and has active discussions ongoing with prospective occupiers for pre-lets on over 2.5 million sq ft of space.

Around 44 per cent of Tritax Big Box’s speculative development portfolio now let or in solicitors’ hands.

By Liza Helps