BROOMIELAW
Project Value: £150+ million Investment Type: Capital Location: Glasgow City Centre Landowner: Scottish Enterprise Timescale: 2025-2030 Status: Pre-planning
PROJECT OVERVIEW
Scottish Enterprise (SE) are in ownership of three plots of development land on the Broomielaw in Glasgow. This takes SE’s ownership to just under 5 acres of contiguous development land adjacent to the River Clyde in Glasgow’s International Financial Services District. The land acquisitions completes a significant site assembly exercise by SE of prime waterfront development land within Glasgow city centre. To date, SE’s high-level vision has focused on providing a world-class mixed-use development incorporating office, retail, hotel, leisure and residential. A previous capacity study informed by GCC’s Broomielaw District Regeneration Framework demonstrated that the sites could accommodate up to 1.8million sqft of mixed development, with a subsequent EIA estimating a potential 4,833 FTE’s could be created.
SE are currently in the process of procuring a design and property consultancy team with the intention of developing a vision piece for the site over the next 6-9 months as a catalyst for the estimated 1.8m sq. ft. development comprising office, residential, lab and complimentary leisure uses that will form a new mixed used city centre quarter.
Potential mixed-use public realm
INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITIES
Scottish Enterprise’s proposals include a world class sustainable mix of office, residential, and leisure uses. The indicative gross development value is circa £150 million.
The vision piece will be developed to guide the appropriate mix of uses with the intention of establishing potential development capacity and massing, give consideration of what uses are a best fit and could be accommodated on the site.
It is proposed that SE may begin the process of competitively seeking a development partner for the Broomielaw with the expectation that this will attract both local and international interest. In the interim SE will also engage with property developers and interested parties who have a contractually agreed end occupier capable of generating economic impact of transformational scale across the wider Glasgow City Region, comparable in scale to the recently completed Barclays Campus development at Buchannan Wharf on the opposite side of the River Clyde.
For the avoidance of doubt SE will not engage with parties looking to submit unsolicited bids or proposals for alternative forms of development where no end anchor occupier has been identified.
There is no current detailed financial model for the proposed redevelopment.
Broomielaw block plan
Potential mixed-use development, viewed from the River Clyde
STATUS UPDATE
Scottish Enterprise are currently procuring the services of a Design Consultant and a Property Consultant to produce a vision piece for the Broomielaw sites currently within their ownership (4.96 acres).
Site ownership or control is secured
Scottish Enterprise own the complete 4.96 acre site.
The project offers a potentially acceptable investment return
The current vision is for a world class, sustainable development with an appropriate mix of uses to optimise commercial viability.
Proposed use is identified or permitted in planning
At present there is no planning permission in place. The proposed development will be in line with Glasgow City Council’s new City Centre Strategy 2024-2030, which already shows billions of pounds of further new investment in the pipeline.
The development will also be progressed in line with Glasgow City Council’s forthcoming Tall Buildings policy guidance, which is due to be formally published by summer 2025.
The project is near market and investor-ready
At present there is no planning permission in place. The proposed development will be in line with Glasgow City Council’s new City Centre Strategy 2024-2030, which already shows billions of pounds of further new investment in the pipeline.
The development will also be progressed in line with Glasgow City Council’s forthcoming Tall Buildings policy guidance, which is due to be formally published by summer 2025.
The project caters for a market with identifiable demand
Early in 2024 world-leading business experts fDi Intelligence named Glasgow as Europe’s number one large city for attracting overseas investment.
Glasgow is a recognised knowledge base which ranks in the top 10 in Europe or top 25 globally for the quality of its education and cultural provision. The Glasgow City Region’s universities and colleges generate high levels of industry collaboration, world-leading research, company spin-outs and student satisfaction.
Although office take up in 2023 totalled 862,000 sq. ft., which is below the 10 year average, premium quality space remains undersupplied, with the grade A availability rate at 2.2%. Glasgow’s prime office rent remains unchanged at £39.50 sq. ft. (Source: Avison Young ‘Big Nine’ Q4 2024 review).
A report by Scottish commercial property experts Ryden for Invest Glasgow published at the start of 2024 concluded that despite being a leading UK city for research, innovation and start ups the lack of available lab accommodation was constraining further growth. Unlocking investment in lab space provision is a constraint to regional economic growth that Scottish Enterprise and key Glasgow City Region city stakeholders are particularly keen to work with the commercial property development and investment industry to address.
Glasgow is currently the leading city for BTR in Scotland with the largest pipeline and the greatest number of approved or under construction units. With a target of doubling the city centre population to 40,000 by 2035, Glasgow is interested to work with investors and developers who can deliver more affordable, accessible, safe and sustainable homes.
MORE INFORMATION
Gillian Adam
Head of Property, Scottish Enterprise email: gillian.adam@scotent.co.uk
