The Challenge:
This 109,000 sq ft mixed-use gateway scheme in Reading was a complex multi-phased scheme requiring collaboration along with knowledge, expertise and innovative ideas that could deliver a pre-let development that would have a great return on equity invested.
Kier Property identified this 20.5 acre site as a strategic development opportunity that could bring employment, residential, leisure and small scale retail to this part of Reading.
The Solution:
Delivering this significant retail and leisure scheme in a prominent location; adjacent to Junction 11 of M4, in close proximity to Green Park and The Madjeski Stadium was no mean feat. The fully integrated approach undertaken by the project team took months of careful planning from more than five parts of the Group.
Kier Property and Investec Structured Property Finance (Investec SPF) agreed an equity joint venture to purchase and fund the scheme. Following the purchase the residential land was sold to Bewley Homes for delivery and Kier Property completed a £40m forward funding deal with a client of Aberdeen Asset Management for the retail and leisure element of the pre-let scheme.
Several innovations were trialled during this project, including the use of an innovation seed fund, computer-vision combined with artificial intelligence-backed engine to objectively review on site progress and highlight potential risks to the real-time programme.
The Impact:
Reading Gateway is a fine example of how collaboration maximised with knowledge, expertise and innovative ideas can deliver a pre-let development resulting in a great return on equity invested. This scheme reflects the integrated offer Kier has to offer and the benefits it can bring.
The 85% pre-let space boasts household brands including Wren Living, Premier Inn, Costa, Beefeater and Burger King. The project also contributed to a total social value of £138m in the Reading area (data provided by the Kier SoCC) and generated 263 jobs. The innovative lightweight frame construction method used on the hotel was also featured in Construction News.
View more projects
Every project we deliver is an opportunity for us to bring our unique thinking to solve problems, innovate and collaborate with our clients and beyond.
Butlin’s Splash, Bognor Regis
Building a £40m state of the art swimming pool and leisure complex within the existing Butlin’s resort in Bognor Regis, West Sussex.
Trago Mills
Developing the first site outside Devon and Cornwall for Trago Mills, an independent, family owned and run discount leisure retailer. Bringing much needed employment to the area it includes 11 retail units, external sales area, café, garden centre, goods yard, ice cream stall, bandstand, adventure dome and model railway.
Morley House
The redevelopment of a Grade II listed block on London's Regent Street providing 1,021m² of high-quality retail space on ground and basement level, and 44 new homes for market rent. Achieving the equal highest Considerate Constructors Scheme score ever recorded in London.
St Sidwells Point Leisure Centre
Creating the UK’s first Passivhaus standard ultra-low carbon leisure centre, designed to save up to 70% on annual energy costs.
Aerospace Bristol
Creating a new £19m aviation museum showcasing the role played by the Bristol site in Britain’s aviation history, including a hangar to house the last Concorde ever to fly, restoring a Grade 1 listed First World War hangar to create an exhibition space
Dragon Lane Retail Park, Durham
Kier developed the retail park in Durham and sold it to LondonMetric in 2018.
5 Pancras Square
One of the most sustainable mixed-use building in the country and winner of the Prime Minister’s Better Public Building award.
Everards Meadows Phase 1A
Creating a vibrant destination in Leicestershire, incorporating a new cycle centre and cafe as well as site-wide green infrastructure.
Storyhouse
Developing Chester's largest and most ambitious ever creative project, working in a restricted city centre location, adapting the programme when a Roman building was discovered on site, restoring and revitalising a Grade II Listed building, creating new cultural spaces and receiving the Arts Council's highest ever score for a building.
Everards Meadows Phase 1B
Working collaboratively with Everards to regenerate land previously occupied by their brewing facilities, for the benefit of the people of Leicestershire.
Cheltenham Racecourse Redevelopment
Delivering a new 6,500-capacity 5 ½ storey grandstand at one Britain’s most iconic racecourses.
North Sea Observatory
A unique purpose-built marine observatory on the Lincolnshire coastline.
Aberdeen Music Hall
Restoring, renovating and extending this prestigious Grade A listed performing arts building, utilising building conservation techniques whilst internally upgrading the interiors and finishes to a high quality and installing new, modern building services and a/v equipment throughout.
Reading Gateway
Identifying this 20.5 acre site in Reading as a strategic development opportunity, delivering a retail and leisure scheme including new homes, a hotel, retail space, car showrooms and industrial units, trailing new innovations and generating 263 jobs and £138m of social value.
FA Parklife
As part of the Football Association’s master-plan to build new football facilities in 30 cities by 2020, Kier have successfully delivered four all-purpose football hubs using state of the art 3G artificial grass at key grass-root areas across Liverpool.
Elliott’s Field Retail Park Phase 2
Redeveloping a brownfield site to construct a new carbon neutral shopping park, creating the world’s first multi-let retail asset to achieve a BREEAM Outstanding rating.
The Aperture
The Aperture is the first phase of residential buildings on the Greenwich Peninsula. This five storey building comprises of a restaurant and deli on the ground floor, day nursery on the first floor, estate management and a community centre on the second/third floors with a gym on the remaining floors.
Hampton by Hilton, Bristol Airport
The construction of a hotel consisting of 201 bedrooms over four floors, utilising significant offsite manufacture.
Trade City and Logistics City
Developing more than six million sq ft of award winning speculative industrial space, with sizes ranging from small start-up to national distribution units through Kier Property's Trade City and Logistics City brands.
Sheffield North Active
Transforming a tired council facility into a modern new leisure centre in the north of Sheffield, adhering to Sport England guidelines and taking on board local concerns, introducing a bold exterior design and keeping to tight deadlines.
Glasgow Fort
Constructing a new retail unit that included remodelling existing car parks, a major re-alignment of the existing spine road - including removal of roundabouts - significant public utility services diversions and installation of toucan crossings.
Walsall Waterfront Leisure
Completing the penultimate phase of the £65m waterfront development, taking it through the planning process, regenerating over 17 acres in Walsall including The Light Cinema and popular national restaurant chains, making the most of a canalised location and engaging with the local community.
Watford Riverwell
Delivering the £450m Watford Riverwell as a 15-20 year joint venture with Watford Borough Council, which involves regenerating 70 acres of land in West Watford to create residential, office, retail, leisure, industrial and hotel space.
Princes Gate Retail Park
Creating a new retail and leisure heart for the town comprising 23 shops, restaurants and bars, together with a multi-screen Empire cinema, 60 bed Premier Inn hotel and a 345 space car park.
Motel One
Transforming a derelict building into a 172 bedroom modern boutique hotel, retaining and preserving many historic features uncovered during the work.
Manor Kingsway
Transforming the former Manor and Kingsway Hospitals situated 1.5 miles west of Derby city centre, creating a diverse and thriving community of 700 homes with recreational facilities, retail space and a business park to create 450 jobs.
Gibraltar Point Visitor Centre
Creating a new visitor centre at this Site of Special Scientific Interest after the previous one was damaged by a tidal surge, ensuring its protection from flooding and its coastal position, incorporating sustainable features and refurbishing an 1800s coastguard building to be used as an exhibition space.
Jaguar Land Rover Car Showroom
Constructing a high specification Jaguar Land Rover car showroom for high-end tenant Jardine Motors, ensuring high quality design and build standards.
Finlake Leisure Pool
Designing and constructing a new leisure complex within this holiday village on the edge of the Dartmoor National Park in Devon, including toddler and 20m adult swimming pools, Tornado and Twister flume rides, and water playground, gymnasium, other leisure facilities and associated plant and equipment.
Crewe Lifestyle Centre
Creating a viable and affordable facility that brought all Crewe's lifestyle services - pool, gym, sports hall, library, specialist daycare and family service facilities - together under one roof, meeting a diverse range of user needs and building within a constrained town centre site.
Tri-Link 140, Normanton
This scheme provides an excellent industrial and warehouse opportunity, incorporating 136,231 sq ft warehouse and 6,107 sq ft of office space.
Oldham Town Hall
Restoring an iconic building, taking part in feasibility studies to decide the best use of the building, working on the project to turn it into a seven-screen cinema with restaurants, coffee shop and retail units, winning multiple industry awards and creating something of huge importance to local people.
Wedge House
Building a striking new build boutique hotel with works comprising the design, construction and fit out of 192 hotel rooms, 4,700m2 Cat A office space and full fit out of three floors of bars and restaurants.
One Station Square
Working with Newlon Housing Trust, the project involves the demolition of the existing structure and the design and construction of a new residential development of 128 dwellings comprising 117 shared ownership flats,11 private sale flats plus 1 commercial unit to shell and core finish.
Muller PL500
Extending Müller’s Private Label plant in Donnington, Telford, to enable the factory to more than double production of some of the nation’s favourite yoghurts from approximately 200 million to 500 million pots a year.
Protolabs, Halesfield 8 Telford
Extending Protolabs’ European Headquarters in Telford by 50,000 sq ft to house an additional 50 CNC machines and 20 injection moulding presses, meeting an increased demand across the automotive, aerospace, medical, electronic and heavy industry sectors.
Delivering and adapting industrial units for SEGRO
We have delivered over £200m of works for SEGRO, across 33 projects over the last fourteen years. Working collaboratively with SEGRO and its tenants, we have a successful track record and flexible approach in delivering and adapting industrial units to tenants’ needs.
Ericsson - Radio Access Network Framework
The RAN (Radio Access Network) is the technology used in the UK to allow mobile phones to transmit and receive data and voice services. Ericsson are a leading provider of RAN access to many of the UK’s mobile networks and in 2013, we were appointed by Ericsson to maintain its RAN assets to keep the UK’s 4G and 5G networks live and operational
Ponteland School & Leisure Centre
Ponteland School & Leisure Centre features a 420-place primary school and a 1,600-place secondary school, a state-of-the-art leisure centre with swimming pools, aqua play, spa, gym, climbing walls, dance studios, soft play zone, a 3G sports pitch, bar, cafés, library and a new community fire station.