Double Success for dohertybaines

dohertybaines have successfully let unit 7 Fairway Drive, Green Lane, Heathrow TW4 to Inviron; the installation, maintenance and management of infrastructure firm.  The unit was let on a 6 year lease and was approximately 11,305 sq ft. It was also fully refurbished prior to marketing.

dohertybaines also let unit 15 Airlinks, which was approximately 2,952 sq ft and also fully refurbished prior to marketing. The premises were let to Multilight, on a 5 year lease.

For more information on the above, please contact Paul Londra.

dohertybaines sells The Matrix Building in Aldgate, London EC3 on behalf of Administrators

Asia-based hotel group Dorsett Hospitality International has bought the Matrix Building, London EC3 for £14.05m from Martin Ellis and Les Ross, partners in Grant Thornton UK LLP and joint administrators of No 9 Aldgate Limited.

dohertybaines advised the joint administrators on the sale of the building which is located adjacent to Aldgate underground station. It comprises 47,720 sq ft of offices and is set to be converted into a hotel by the purchasers. The property would become the group's second hotel in London, joining the Dorsett Londin in Shepherd's Bush, which is under construction and expected to be launched in the first quarter of 2014.

John Connolly, Head of UK Developmet for Dorsett Hospitality International which is headquartered in Hong Kong said: "We are delighted to have completed our second acquisition which demonstrates our commitment to the London Hotel market. We are in a unique position by using our internal financial resources to acquire, develop and operate under a single entity. We are actively pursuing further hotel and residential opportunities in Central London."

dohertybaines partner Rob Nelson who advised the joint administrators on the sale of the freehold and long leasehold interests said: "The price achieved reflected the strength of the location and the redevelopment potential which Dorsett Hospitality International has recognised."

2 Ventura Park, Radlett

Dohertybaines has let Unit 2 Ventura Park, Radlett on a new 10 year lease.  The 40,942 sq ft unit was fully refurbished which included a new roof.

Please contact Paul Londra for more information.

SEGRO v dohertybaines 5 a side

They say good games come in threes and this commentator would certainly agree with that.  Following on from Manchester United v Southampton and Arsenal v Liverpool, this was the third installment of the eagerly anticipated trilogy.

The lights shone on Latimer Park, a stones throw from the BBC Outside Broadcast team who wouldn't be covering the event.  No fear, the tie had been built up for months: SEGRO v dohertybaines.  On a balmy evening, the game would be played at temperatures more suited to the Azteca Stadium, Mexico City rather than under the A40 flyover in early September. Kick Off was slightly delayed to 6:15 on police grounds to allow the local youths to be coaxed off the pitch.

The warm up was orchestrated carefully by Chris Mitchell. This consisted of booting the ball as hard as possible past Paul Londra in goal. This was followed by David O'Donovan and Stuart Atkinson enacting one v one scenarios with David finishing well.  Alistair Finn was noted doing some strange stretching exercises and Rob Nelson was on the phone. Michael Haines and Alex Stothard were keeping an eye on the bags and said children. Andy Baines then proceeded to hit the ball hard and low into the corner of the net.  This was an indication of the SEGRO attack to come later on.

Segro arrived in their red strip, black shorts. The average age, around 26. Firstly Martin, then Tom Royston, then Alan Holland.  Richard Smith followed another youngster with terry.  All were studying their opposition's strange warm up routine intently. Would the experienced line up of dohertybaines triumph over the youth of SEGRO marshaled by Alan Holland? All would be revealed shortly.

Michael Haines assisted SEGRO by starting off for the reds before Ben Baldwin and Tony Hines arrived.

The first few minutes were characterised by careful moves by both teams but the defences were on top. Neither keeper being tested in the earlier skirmishes. Unfortunately this was not going to be replicated throughout the match.  Dohertybaines were first to settle bringing a brace of smart saves from Tom Royston in the SEGRO goal.  With the scores still at 0-0, 15 minutes in, the audience were beginning to think that this one could go to penalties. They were wrong. Dohertybaines were caught up field and SEGRO broke at pace, down their left wing. A nice one-two movement set up by Tony Hynes for the shot which he dispatched with aplomb. This was a move that SEGRO were to plunder mercilessly throughout the match while dohertybaines threw men forward in the vain hope of leaving the scores.

The second SEGRO goal came from the same side and a similar movement, this time at the far post, rifled in.  2-0 and dohertybaines looked shell shocked. Some substitutions were made, notably with Alex Stothard coming on to add youth to the dohertybaines line up.  It seemed to work. A well worked move by Stuart and Andy, allowed Andy sight on goal.  He powered home the ball to make the scores 2-1. Hope springs eternal for dohertybaines. Andy then made space for himself to shoot again but this time he hit the crossbar and the ball went out. Some might say 2-2 and game on, but it was still 2-1 and this may have been the wake up call for SEGRO. They pounced swiftly to quell the uprising and finished well yet again; 3-1, knocking any momentum out of the rigid pass and move game and asking questions of the dohertybaines zonal marking system.

The weary legs of the dohertybaines team were changed again but this had little effect as SEGRO continued to break forward and hammer in shots on goal. All three keepers put in good shifts helping to keep the scores respectable along with a rearguard action from Nelson, Finn and Haines making several good late interceptions.

However, a flicker of light shone through the westway dual carriageway and onto Chris Mitchell who decided enough was enough.  He made good progress on the dohertybaines right wing, and took it upon himself to shoot from distance, GOAL! and probably the best one of the night. Two goals for dohertybaines and double what Jurgen Grobler the german rowing coach had predicted.

There was a late flurry of shots from David and Chris but the dogged defence from SEGRO kept dohertybaines at bay.

After another trio of good strikes from SEGRO, that was that. David suggested next goal wins, but SEGRO got that anyway! The game finished 10-2 which was no disgrace as SEGRO are the current IAS champions and have a Monday night 5 a side club allowing them to hone their routines and set pieces. We have a Monday night curry club!

A great sporting occasion played in the manner and spirit of the Olympic backdrop.

Then all of the elgin for a well deserved pint of organge and lemonade/strong continental lager and the largest porkie/scotch egg platters many had ever seen.

Paul Londra

Unit 8 Chiltonian Estate, Lewisham

dohertybaines have let the remaining unit at Chiltonian Industrial Estate, Lewisham to We Buy Any Car.

The end of terrace unit was approx 2,200 sq ft and results in the estate being fully let.

For more information, please contact Paul Londra.

Empty rates avoidance ruled OK

A landmark high court ruling has this week effectively legalised "imaginative" empty rates avoidance tactics.

The judgment will be welcomed by landlords and occupiers suffering with the burden of the so-called Bombsite Britain tax.

The case involved the use of just 0.2% of the floorspace of a 140,000 sq ft shed in Rowleys Green, Coventry, being used to store documents.

On Thursday, Judge Jarman QC ruled that cash and carry chain Makro's use of the warehouse to store 16 pallets of documents between November 2009 and January 2010 was enough to trigger a six-month empty rates grace period once the files were removed.

Gareth Buckley, a partner at WHR Property Consultants, which acted for Makro, said: "The decision reaffirms the legitimacy of the intermittent occupation strategy that has been implemented by law-abiding ratepayers to manage their empty rate liability."

CBRE's head of rating, Tony Dann, said the ruling would give landlords more confidence to use the mitigation tactics and that if councils tried to object they "wouldn't have a leg to stand on".

Gerald Eve's head of rating, Jerry Schurder, said the tactics could reduce a business's empty rates liability by up to 80% a year.

The ruling will be a blow to the government, which is handing out around £1bn in empty property rate relief a year as a result of avoidance tactics, and provides further ammunition for the tax to be repealed.

British Property Federation director of finance Peter Cosmetatos said: "Empty rates is an unfair and unproductive tax, so it is hardly surprising that businesses are taking legal, if imaginative, steps to mitigate its effects. What is really disappointing is the government's failure to implement even narrowly targeted ways to alleviate the harm caused by empty rates - until it does, many businesses will feel obliged to divert resources into limiting the damage."

There have been fresh calls in recent months for the government to scrap empty property rates. In May, an Estates Gazette investigation revelealed councils alone pay around £50m a year in empty rates.

Last month, chancellor George Osborne agreed to review empty rates legislation on the back of EG's investigation and tasked MP Julian Sturdy to work up proposals for how it could be changed.

For further information, contact Fiona Shorey fshorey@dohertybaines.com

More deals for SEGRO on A40 Portfolio

Units 4 & 11 Victoria Industrial Estate, Park Royal, W3 have recently completed.

Unit 4, 10,463 sq ft was let to Red Creative for a term of 5 years.

Unit 11, 4,089 sq ft has also been let on a 10 year lease.

For further information, please contact Michael Haines.

Unit 260 Parkbury, Old Parkbury Lane, Radlett AL2 2DB

dohertybaines have recently let Unit 260 Parkbury, Old Parkbury Lane, Radlett AL2 2DB to Complex Cleaning on a 15 year lease.

The modern 8,454 sq ft end of terrace unit was let by dohertybaines on behalf of SEGRO the landlords, and means the terrace is fully let.

For more information, please contact Paul Londra.

Interlink 100, Mollison Avenue, Enfield

dohertybaines acting on behalf of PJH Group, have recently agreed the surrender and regrant of new lease to DHL at the unit known as Interlink 100 at Enfield.

The 100,000 sq ft unit, had approximately 5 years remaining on the lease but dohertybaines successfully negotiated their clients lease surrender and for DHL to take a new 10 year lease direct from the landlords.

The letting confirms occupier confidence in the Enfield industrial market, especially int he larger unit size bracket.

For more information on this transaction, please contact Paul Londra.

2 Waterglade Industrial Estate

dohertybaines have sublet unit 2 Waterglade Industrial Estate in West Thurrock to Land Management.

The sublease on the 7,897 sq ft unit has a co terminus expiry with the headlease of June 2014.

For further information, please contact Paul Londra.

Fully let Estate for Blackstone

Units 3 & 4 Colonial Drive, Bollo Lane, Chiswick W4 (13,271 sq ft) have been let to The Sofa & Chair Company.

The Estate is now fully occupied.

For further information, please contact Michael Haines.

More Freehold Sales for Hillview

At Genesis Business Park, Whitby Avenue, Park Royal NW10 Units 5 & 12 have recently completed.

Unit 5, 1,940 sq ft has been sold to Lakethorne.

Unit 12, 2,115 has been sold to Salon Rentals.

For further information, please contact Michael Haines.

New Casio G-Shock Retail Store in Covent Garden

On behalf of our client, Casio, dohertybaines have acquired a new G-Shock store at 5B The Market in the heart of Covent Garden's Piazza. Casio will trade from both the ground and basement levels and the fit out team aim to have the store open for trading by Easter. The store will retail Casio's high value products for the top end of the market. The adjoining unit is occupied by jeweller Links of London and the world's largest Apple store, which opened in 2010, is diagonally opposite.

For further information, please contact Brendan Joyce.

New Virtual Tours from SEGRO

dohertybaines are pleased to announce that SEGRO now have virtual tours for a number of their units.

Unit 1 Victoria Industrial Estate (12,857 sq ft) has been fully refurbished to a high standard and benefits from fully fitted ground and first floor office accommodation, a new roof, 6.6 m eaves height, 2 full height level access electrically operated loading doors, 3 phase electricity, a large yard and 12 designated car parking spaces. Visit www.SEGRO.com/tour/victoria-unit-1 for a virtual tour of the unit.

Unit 1 Frogmore Industrial Estate, (25,085 sq ft) has also been refurbished to a high standard and benefits from a larger dedicated concrete yard with 35 car parking spaces, fully fitted office accommodation and 2 level loading doors. Visit www.SEGRO.com/tour/frogmore-unit1 for a virtual tour of the unit.

For further information, please contact Michael Haines.

Segro signs MedicAnimal at Park Royal

Segro has leased 47,612 sq ft of space at Park Royal to online retailer of pet supplies MedicAnimal.

The retailer has signed a five year lease at Frogmore Industrial Estate.

Harrison Leggett acted on behalf of MedicAnimal.

dohertybaines acted on behalf of SEGRO.

http://www.propertyweek.com/news/segro-signs-medicanimal-at-park-royal/5031422.article

For further information, contact Michael Haines.

Investment Acquisition - The Chase Centre, Chase Road, Park Royal, London NW10 6QD

dohertybaines are pleased to announce the successful purchase of The Chase Centre in Park Royal.

Acting on behalf of The Sullivan Discretionary Trust, dohertybaines were involved in all parts of the purchase of this Freehold Multi-let Industrial Estate.

The estate which was sold by LaSalle Investment Management and were advised by John Miles & Company comprises two terraces of 7 industrial/business units totaling 21,461 sq ft (1,993.80 sq m) on a site of 0.71 acres.

The units are multi-let at a total income of £214,810 pa.

dohertybaines have also been retained as letting agents.

For further information, contact Michael Haines mhaines@dohertybaines.com

First 2012 Rates Bills Arrive

Our Treasury Department have just passed the first rates bills of 2012 to the Rating Department for verification, it doesn't seem 12 months ago that the last round arrived. Republic of Ireland bills have been received with England and Wales expected to arrive in the next 6 - 8 weeks and Scotland and Northern Ireland some time after that. It always amazes us how the bills can be calculated incorrectly on so many occasaions and we therefore provide a free rates bill auditing service to our clients to ensure you are being charged correctly. This also allows us to check that your premises are valued correctly and ensure we have any mistakes rectified and backdated where applicable.

If you would like to avail of our audit service then please send your bills to me fshorey@dohertybaines.com and if you have any queries on any aspect of your rates then please don't hesitate to get in touch.

Fiona Shorey - fshorey@dohertybaines.com / 020 7355 3033

Good start to year for Rreef

Unit 1 B Dukes Road Industrial Estate, Dukes Road, Park Royal W3 0SL has been prelet to Screwfix on a 10 year lease. The unit is 7,503 sq ft.

For further information, contact Michael Haines.

Response to budget announcement on rates

The Chancellor has announced that he is extending the business rates holiday from October this year to April 2013. The rates holiday first announced in the 2010 budget allows businesses with a rateable value of up to £6,000 a year will be exempt from paying any rates at all for 12 months, with partial relief for properties rated up to £12,000.

The Chancellor says that this will mean 500,000 rate payers or a third of all shops will have no business rates liability until April 2013.

Fiona Shorey, Head of Rating at dohertybaines said "Business rates are the third biggest cost for small businesses, after salaries and rents and while we are delighted to hear the the Chancellor is taking some steps to help small businesses he has made no announcement about any real help for medium sized firms who are really feeling the pinch during the current economic climate".

The Chancellor also announced that he would be offering businesses the option to defer 60% of the increase in their rates bill next year. Fiona Shorey commented that it would be more helpful to revisit how the increases in rates are set. "A spike in inflation in September has led to a 5.6% increase in business rates across the board. A deferment of this increase is little more than covering over the cracks to the system. When this deferment was offered to businesses in 2008 many didn't take up the option because it was seen to involve too much bureaucracy with little benefit".

For more information on your rates bill contact our business rates department.