Member Article

Chesterfield development firm leading largest private investment deal in Sheffield city centre

A Chesterfield development firm is behind the largest ever private investment deal in Sheffield city centre, which is set to regenerate a key site and create a home for thousands of high-quality jobs.

Bolsterstone Group PLC, which is headquartered on Beresford Way in Dunston, is delivering the £300million West Bar scheme in Sheffield centre with its sister company Urbo.

The £160million first phase is currently on-site and is being delivered by main contractor Bowmer and Kirkland following a funding agreement with insurance giant Legal and General.

This initial phase will see the construction of 100,000 square feet of ‘grade A’ office space, along with retail and leisure uses, 368 build-to-rent apartments and associated high-quality public realm. The company also plans to deliver 320 build-to-rent apartments in the Basin Square neighborhoods of its Chesterfield Waterside scheme.

Once completed, the West Bar development is expected to bring around 8,000 office-based jobs to the area and over 1,000 residents in the apartments.

The floorplates available within the West Bar office buildings will be up to 15,000sq.ft, the largest in Sheffield, which will be of significant appeal to large scale occupiers and inward investors.

The West Bar project as a whole will, when complete, deliver over one million sq ft of office, retail, residential and leisure space and is one of the biggest regeneration projects in the region.

Councillor Mazher Iqbal, co-chair of Transport, Regeneration and Climate Committee at Sheffield City Council, commented: “West Bar is a key site and an important part of the wider transformational plan for Sheffield city centre.”

It is through its public/private partnership model that Bolsterstone is transforming cities and communities throughout the region, creating new places to live, work and invest.

Co-founded in Chesterfield in 1989 by Chesterfield resident Peter Swallow and his business partner Mike Corker, Bolsterstone has built a significant reputation as a regeneration specialist and is currently leading more than three quarters of a billion pounds of regeneration projects working alongside the public sector – current examples being West Bar, Chesterfield Waterside and New Bolton Woods in Bradford.

Peter explained: “The central location of Chesterfield within the UK, great transport links and road networks gives us easy access to our projects throughout the region.”

New Bolton Woods is an ambitious £150 million development and regeneration project which will see the construction of nearly 1,000 homes to create a thriving and sustainable new community. More than 200 homes have already been developed with the scheme. Tthe current phase being delivered in partnership with leading housebuilder Keepmoat Homes. Phase 1 of the new local centre has also been delivered, with initial occupiers Aldi food stores and a Costa Coffee drive thru trading very successfully.

Peter Swallow originally hails from Chesterfield and continues to live in the area as well as operate the business from the town. He said: “I went to college in Chesterfield and love the character of the place – both the people and the architecture. The town has ambitions for the future which, importantly, are firmly supported by the public, council, and business community. There are so many positives about running a business in Chesterfield, not least the town’s proximity to excellent road, rail and airport services.”

Keen to give something back to Chesterfield, Peter has also been the Chair of the town’s inward investment campaign Destination Chesterfield since it was established in 2011. He gives his time voluntarily alongside fellow board members, to drive forward the promotion of Chesterfield.

Bolsterstone has worked in partnership with Chesterfield Borough Council to produce a masterplan for the Chesterfield Waterside project, an ambitious and transformational scheme designed by specialist national consultants AECOM, also based Chesterfield. The scheme has planning permission and, once complete, the project will regenerate the 60-acre former industrial site into a vibrant new waterside quarter for Chesterfield.

Construction on site began with the first phase of housing being delivered by Great Places Housing Group in 2015. Since then, housebuilder Avant Homes has built and sold around 200 homes at Waterside Quarter, which is located within The Park neighbourhood of the project.

The most recently completed addition to the Chesterfield Waterside scheme is a high quality 35,000sq. ft office building which provides the first Grade A office accommodation to be constructed in Chesterfield for many years. The building, known as One Waterside Place, is already home to two substantial tenants - regional accountants BHP, and luxury clothing brand Varleys.

One Waterside Place represents the first step in delivering the commercial element of the £340million Chesterfield Waterside scheme, Basin Square. The £75 million Basin Square neighbourhood will also comprise 320 built-to-rent apartments, a 400-space multi-storey car park, a 140-bed hotel as well as retail and leisure units.

Peter added: “I am delighted with the excellent progress being made at Chesterfield Waterside. Demand for what we have created so far is strong as developers see the massive potential of Chesterfield Waterside and the town as a whole.”

In addition to regeneration, Bolsterstone is also a renowned for commercial and industrial developments, acquiring new sites and redeveloping existing sites for major names like B&Q, KFC, Aldi, UPS and Costa. The company is always on the look out for new sites and opportunities for either residential and commercial projects.

“Whether it’s a private or public partnership, our aim is to create places people want to live, work and invest throughout the UK and Chesterfield has provided us with the ideal location from which to do this, he added.

In terms of what’s next for Bolsterstone, the company soon hopes to bring forward a high-quality leisure development in the Staffordshire Moorlands, just under 40 miles away from Chesterfield.

Moneystone Park, a joint venture between Laver Leisure and Bolsterstone, will transform a former quarry into 250 holiday lodges, a leisure hub building with swimming pool, gym, restaurant and café. The £35million project, which is located in close proximity to Alton Towers, will bring significant economic benefits to the area, with jobs created and increased visitor spend of around £1 million a year. It is estimated that the project will support 230 jobs during construction and a further 250 once the park is operational.

With West Bar, Chesterfield Waterside and Moneystone Park all well under way, Bolsterstone Group is now actively looking for more sites or investments to support their future growth.

Tom Swallow, Development Manager at Bolsterstone Group said: “We have an envious track record of delivering high quality development both privately or working with public authorities. We want to continue to build on this and would be eager to hear from anyone considering selling land, commercial property or investments within the area.”

Bolsterstone Group is just one of many examples of business operating successfully throughout the UK from a commercial base in Chesterfield. Its geographical position is attracting inward investors as well as people to live and work here.

Peter added: “The lasting and far-reaching change we are striving for in Chesterfield cannot be done by one organisation alone; it must be a collaborative effort.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Anna Melton .