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Moorfield acquires The Towers, Didsbury from Wereldhave

Moorfield Group (Moorfield), on behalf of the Moorfield Real Estate Fund II (MREF II), has announced the acquisition of The Towers in Didsbury, South Manchester for £47m from Wereldhave.

The opportunity was identified through Moorfield’s joint venture partnership with Manchester based Property Alliance Group, who will be Moorfield’s property management partner in the implementation of the JV’s business plan.

The Towers is currently occupied by high profile tenants including British Airways, John Lewis, Vodafone and Cisco. The estate consists of nine office buildings, totalling 290,000 sq ft, within 19 acres of landscaped parkland. Under the new ownership, there are plans to undertake a comprehensive refurbishment programme throughout the estate including extensive landscaping works.

The Towers location and surrounding abundance of amenities are key to its tenant appeal and success to date, with the M56 less than two miles away, and both Parrs Wood leisure amenities and Didsbury Village only a short walk from the scheme.   The current and future public transport links enhance employer appeal, with a nearby main bus station already in existence and the new Didsbury Metrolink due for completion in 2013. The nearby East Didsbury railway station currently provides regular 12 minute journey times to Manchester city centre and Manchester International Airport.  The Towers provides a natural extension to the city as opposed to the peripheral locations of standard business parks.

Marc Gilbard, chief executive of Moorfield Group, said: “The partnership has worked hard over the last 24 months to find the right opportunities to acquire in the North West.  We are confident in this asset’s potential to become an even more successful and desirable location following our focus on building and site improvements, satisfying current and future occupier demand and requirements.”

Dominic Pozzoni, director, Property Alliance Group, added: “Our focus has always been on building relationships and partnerships with agents, occupiers and strategic joint venture partners and this off-market acquisition confirms the hard work put in by all involved.   We believe we have acquired the right investment for our partnership with Moorfield, offering substantial potential to improve and enhance the value of the estate. The Towers has it all; the location, ample amenities, strong existing occupiers and the ability to expand in its use and appeal for further occupiers. Property Alliance Group’s core strengths are our established brand of quality design with competitive pricing, supported by the long-standing relationships with tenants.”

“We are already underway with plans to make the change in ownership seamless for existing occupiers and to assess ways to improve the park to ensure Towers is a destination in this key area of Manchester.”

Andrew Turton, Managing Director of Wereldhave, said: “The sale of The Towers is in line with our investment strategy to focus on shopping centre acquisitions and follows the purchase of the Dolphin centre in Poole.”

Dan Crossley, Partner at WHR Property Consultants, says: “We are proud to have facilitated the purchase of Towers, Didsbury, which is an asset of the highest quality.  We look forward to working with the new owners to build on the success of this popular scheme.”

WHR Property acted on behalf of Moorfield and Property Alliance Group and Jones Lang La Salle acted for the vendor.


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