A North East commercial development with the potential to create more than 1,000 jobs has reached a construction milestone.
Plans for Merchant Park, based close to train maker Hitachi Rail Europe’s plant in Newton Aycliffe, got under way in March, when the first phase was set in motion on the back of a £9m investment by Merchant Park Developments. The company’s plans will see the addition of three large warehouse units on Millennium Way in a 65-acre park which will help to create around 1,014 jobs once all three phases of the site are completed.
This week has seen the topping out of Merchant Park’s phase one 17-acre development, a significant step forward for the development which will provide 52,500 sqft and bring 198 jobs to the local area. The first part of the project is due to complete in September 2025, and infrastructure works are also well under way for phases two and three, creating warehouses of 89,000 sqft and 126,500 sqft respectively.
The topping out ceremony was held by Merchant Park, FW Capital and Hall Construction. Investment for phase one has been provided through a seven-figure senior debt package from the North East Commercial Property Investment Fund (CPIF), which is managed by FW Capital and backed by the North East Combined Authority (North East CA).
An incentive has also been provided by the North East CA to support the immediate financial viability gap for the first phase which includes infrastructure costs for the following two phases.
Adrian Goodall, Merchant Park Developments, said: “I’ve been impressed by the progress on site by our contractors Hall Construction. After months of planning and preparation work it’s fantastic to hit this milestone which brings us closer to supporting North East businesses looking to scale up and locate to new premises.”
Chris Dixon, senior investment executive at FW Capital, said: “It’s great to be involved with the ‘topping out’ ceremony and see first-hand how investment from the CPIF is helping meet the demand for commercial property space in the North East. We share Merchant Park’s vision to create quality commercial warehouse and office space, regenerating a previous barren land.”
The development team includes contractors Hall Construction Services, Helm Consulting, letting agents Connect Property North East and CBRE, as well as FW Capital and the North East CA.
The North East Commercial Property Investment Fund is a £35m fund which provides loans of up to £7m to support non-speculative and speculative developments for new build or refurbished commercial projects. Repayments will be reinvested in new schemes, creating a total investment of £119m into commercial property in 15 years. It aims to create 5,600 jobs and develop 140,000 sq m of commercial space.
