Ballymore has instructed Savills and GBR Phoenix Beard as joint letting agents for the office element of Three Snowhill, Birmingham. The circa £200m (€253.6m) scheme is the largest ever speculative office development in a city centre outside of London.
The 19-storey building, which will be ready for occupation from late 2018, is being forward funded by M&G through a deal secured by Savills earlier this year. Upon completion, it will provide 385,000 sq ft (35,767 sq m) of Grade A office accommodation with each floor built around a central atrium offering flexible break out space. The three lower and ground floors will feature a further 35,000ft² (3,252m²) mix of offices and potential conference, retail and leisure space.
The landmark property is the third and final phase of the Snowhill masterplan which has been developed by Ballymore over the last 12 years. The first phase, One Snowhill, was completed in 2009 and acquired by UIRE for £125m (€158.6m) in 2013. It is let to tenants including KPMG, Barclays and DWF as their respective regional headquarters. The second phase, Two Snowhill, was acquired by M&G in 2013 for £147m (€186.5m) and is principally occupied by HS2, law firm Gowling WLG and accountants BDO.
Located at the core of Birmingham’s central business district and in close proximity to Colmore Row, Snowhill is established as the gateway to the city’s commercial centre and its prime office location. Birmingham Snow Hill train and metro station is immediately adjacent to the development.
Nick Williams, office agency director at Savills, commented: “We are naturally very pleased to have been instructed at Three Snowhill, which without doubt will be one of the highest quality office schemes in the UK regions. The design and specification will give the property international appeal and we look forward to working with Ballymore and GBR Phoenix Beard to realise its full potential.”
Ben Thacker, director at GBR Phoenix Beard, added: “We are delighted to have the opportunity to further our historic involvement with Snowhill. M&G’s commitment is a real vote of confidence for the city and will complete the already hugely successful Snowhill office development. Ballymore has created a world class office environment at Snowhill and building three will move this to the next level, delivering something very special to the office market at a time when occupiers nationwide are increasingly turning their focus toward what Birmingham has to offer.”
