Beachcroft Wansbroughs is set to release the largest requirement to hit the Bristol office market for nearly two years, writes Nadia Elghamry.
The law firm is believed to be looking for a 100,000 sq ft office to consolidate its premises in the city.
Beachcroft occupies 34,000 sq ft at Deeley Freed’s 10-22 Victoria Street, where it is likely to surrender a 10-year lease signed in 1999, for which it pays £18 per sq ft. It would also hand back 15,000 sq ft at Scottish Widows’ 1 Redcliffe Street.
The firm is in negotiations with Deeley Freed, which is hoping for a significant prelet to kickstart a 170,000 sq ft mixed-use scheme on its Portwall Lane site, previously occupied by car showroom Dick Lovetts.
Other potential sites include HDG Mansur’s 500,000 sq ft-plus development on the former Courage Brewery site.
This is the biggest office requirement since Clerical Medical signed a prelet for a 175,000 sq ft headquarters at Crest Nicholson’s Harbourside in February 2003.
Jonathan Vines at Hartnell Taylor Cook, which is advising Beachcroft, said the law firm would become too large for its offices within two to three years if it expanded at its present rate.
