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03 June 2003
Lincoln's
economy
| According to Chris Hodgson,
Partner at Hodgson Elkington, there is
a great deal of money chasing the few
opportunities that are available in Lincoln’s
commercial property market. Competitive
tender is increasingly popular as the
preferred method of sale for development
sites and investments are normally placed
without need for open marketing. |
 |
The bulk of demand from occupiers in the
office and industrial sectors has shifted
perceptably towards freehold tenure; driven
in no small part by a shortage of freehold
property and suitable development sites.
The underlying economy of the area is strong
and well-balanced. Lincoln has a sound engineering
base in both high-tech and traditional industry.
The retail catchment of the City is approximately
three times its indigenous population. The
City’s attractions of its Cathedral,
historic centre, marina and other facilities
have continued to strengthen tourism as an
additional source of local revenue. Set in
the context of one of the most successful
agricultural areas in Europe, we have a diverse
and resilient economy.
Lincoln’s University continues to
grow in the heart of the City and is leading
to new large-scale development of student
accommodation and other support facilities.
Dualling of the A46 from Lincoln to the A1
at Newark is now nearing completion. When
this is extended through to Leicester (M1),
the City will find itself at the end of a
dual carriageway providing and east/west
link between the A1 and M1. It therefore
comes as no surprise that the greater demand
for new office and industrial accommodation
is to the south-west of the City Centre and
on those developments that are most readily-accessible
from the A46.
Within the core of the City, there is an
emerging trend towards City Centre living
and which has all but removed the surplus
stock of 1970s office accommodation (now
earmarked for redevelopment or conversion).
Curiously, rental levels across the board
have only recently (within the last 2 years)
broken through the peaks achieved at the
end of the 1980s. Rentals for best quality
offices are now between £11 and £12
per sq ft and for best located manufacturing/warehouse
space of between £4 and £4.50
per sq ft. Design and build is becoming increasingly
popular as a procurement route and Hodgson
Elkington’s clients currently offer
design and build solutions within most sectors
of the market and on over 60 acres of land
in the immediate Lincoln area.
Further information from:
Christopher Hodgson
Hodgson Elkington, Lincoln
Tel: 01522 512232
©2003
Lincolnshire Echo
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