JR Smart named top Wales & West developer as Capital link opened by First Minister
JR Smart, one of Wales’ most successful developers during the last 30 years, has been named Wales and the South West of England’s top developer for 2009 in the influential Estates Gazette annual awards.
The award was presented to JR Smart founder and Chairman Mr John Smart on Thursday, May 14 by First Minister, Rhodri Morgan at the official launch of Capital Link, the developer’s latest major commercial scheme.
Capital Link, situated at the eastern gateway of Cardiff city centre and the bay, is a speculative 60,000 sq ft Grade A office scheme on a former brownfield site.
It has been developed to meet a significant shortfall in the availability of quality new-build offices in the city and is the latest in a string of successful developments by JR Smart, which has earned it the 2009 title.
“To have been voted Wales and the South West’s leading developer by the industry is a great achievement and reflects the consistently high quality of our commercial schemes,” said Mr Smart.
Rhodri Morgan said: “I congratulate John Smart and his company JR Smart both on winning this award and on developing this outstanding office building. It will help bring new jobs to Cardiff and to Wales. JR Smart is the kind of company that is smart enough to put its money where its mouth is and to carry on investing even through a recession.”
Bill Savage, Chairman of Cardiff & Co, the company charged with promoting Cardiff as an investment location said: “We’re delighted that J R Smart, an investor in Cardiff & Co, has been recognised for the quality of its developments by such an important publication as Estates Gazette.
“Recognition such as this helps provide J R Smart, a local company with a strong sense of belonging and commitment to the Cardiff city-region, with the springboard from which it can raise the profile of its own developments and their attractiveness to potential occupiers.
“In addition, the recognition they have received reflects well on what Cardiff in general has to offer from an investment perspective – something we will be looking to exploit as we roll out a series of activities to promote the city over the coming months.”
The developer is currently pushing ahead with three of South Wales’s largest commercial schemes:
• The 90-acre Capital Business Park at Wentloog, East Cardiff, which is in its sixth and final phase of industrial/offices development;
• The 60,000 sq ft Capital Link speculative office
• and a major mixed-use scheme at Tyndall Street to create several hundred thousand square feet of new offices and commercial space.
Mr Smart said, “There is a clear lack of quality office buildings in Cardiff at the moment, as identified by the city’s agents, which is hampering the capital’s ongoing economic growth. Our new buildings will play a major role in rectifying this situation.”
Capital Link is arranged on 3 and 4 storeys and is close to the city’s landmark ‘Magic Roundabout’ traffic island. The design allows for single or multiple occupation in 7,500 sq ft suites and can be split to suit occupier demand.
Joint agents are Cooke & Arkwright and Fletcher Morgan. John James, Director of Fletcher Morgan, said, “It has excellent car parking for a city centre building with one of the highest ratios and follows on from JR Smart’s successful development of the Anchor Court office scheme on the opposite side of the roundabout which was let quickly to the Maritime Agency and Estyn.”
Roger Thomas, Chairman of Cooke & Arkwright, added, “Capital Link will benefit occupiers because of its first-class location and easy access to the M4, City Centre and Bay area.”
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