Work underway on £10.7m HQ office scheme

Work has started on a £10.7m office development at Parkside on the Knowledge Gateway research and technology park on the University of Essex’s Colchester Campus.The Grade A, 41,571 sq ft office is said to be the largest headquarters style office currently under construction in the eastern region and will be ready in 2023.The building is designed so it can accommodate a large anchor tenant or be sub-divided into smaller units.This is the latest and largest phase of Parkside Office Village which is is a hub for small and medium-sized enterprises which value the campus location and building connections with the university.The university has plans for further development of Parkside and is looking at creating another similar-sized building focusing on health technology and wellbeing, including ageing and assisted living, preventative health technology, and data analytics for health.The South East Local Enterprise Partnership (SELEP) awarded the University of Essex a £5m funding package from the Local Growth Fund (LGF) for Phase 3 of Parkside. SELEP previously provided Growing Places Fund (GPF) loan funding to support the earlier phases of development at Parkside, including a £3.25m GPF loan to support the initial phase.The latest phase of Parkside is available to pre-let with Carter Jonas and Whybrow acting as joint agents.Registrar Bryn Morris was joined on a tour of the site by representatives from contractor R J Carter including director of R G Carter Southern James Wilson and Colchester Borough Council cabinet members including Deputy Leader Cllr Adam Fox, who is also portfolio holder for the local economy and transformation.Morris said: “Seeing the latest, most ambitious phase of Parkside starting to take shape is extremely exciting for the University. This shows the level of ambition we have for the Knowledge Gateway research and technology park.”We have a growing community of businesses across Parkside Office Village and the Innovation Centre and this building offers a fantastic opportunity to bring in new tenants who share our vision of driving forward the economy of the Eastern region.”James Wilson, general manager and director from R G Carter, added: “We are delighted to be collaborating with the University of Essex to deliver this exciting development. The ground-breaking ceremony is a great opportunity for us to celebrate the start of this innovative project, providing exceptional facilities that will positively impact the university campus, local businesses, and support wider economic growth across the region.”Bryn Morris was also joined by Cllr Pam Cox, portfolio holder for culture and heritage; and Cllr Andrea Luxford Vaughan, portfolio holder for planning and infrastructure, alongside R J Carter representatives senior contracts manager Ian Powell, project manager John Turpin and senior quantity surveyor Murray Pease.