Portfolio Update

RNS Number : 4465B

NewRiver Retail Limited

17 April 2012

 



NewRiver Retail Limited

("NewRiver" or "the Company")

Portfolio Update

NewRiver Retail Limited (AIM and CISX: NRR), the UK REIT specialising in value-creating retail property investment and active asset management, today announces the following update on portfolio activities.

Development update for Wallsend town centre regeneration

NewRiver is pleased to announce that it has exchanged contracts to acquire the freehold interest of a vacant department store formerly occupied by the Co Op. The site is located immediately adjacent to The Forum Shopping Centre in Wallsend which was originally acquired by NewRiver in 2010 as part of a portfolio of shopping centres subject to a distressed debt sale. This vacant department store, which comprises of circa 62,000 sq ft, will be redeveloped to provide four new large retail units with active frontage to The Forum Shopping Centre.

NewRiver anticipates spending circa £1.5 million redeveloping the unit and is in advanced discussions with retailers to pre let the space.

NewRiver is also pleased to announce that it has entered into an Option Agreement which gives the Company the right to acquire significant adjacent land holdings currently owned by North Tyneside Council.

NewRiver is proposing a 45,000 sq ft extension to The Forum Shopping Centre plus a 300 space surface car park partly on the adjoining land that is subject to the Option Agreement. Heads of Terms have been agreed with a major supermarket operator to lease the 45,000 sq ft store.

In addition to the extension NewRiver intends to undertake a major refurbishment of the existing shopping centre that will include new entrances, modern lighting and signage, an upgrade to the elevation and roof areas and the installation of wi-fi throughout.

It is intended that a planning application will be submitted in the next three to four months seeking consent for the development and refurbishment of The Forum Shopping Centre. North Tyneside has been very supportive of NewRiver's proposals to date and NewRiver is pleased to have established an excellent working relationship with the Council.

Property Director at NewRiver, Allan Lockhart said:

"Since acquiring The Forum Shopping Centre in Wallsend in December 2010, NewRiver's key objective has been to regain control over the vacant department store which will enable us to undertake our planned redevelopment and refurbishment programme. Our proposals will revitalise the shopping centre and will result in a significant increase in footfall and dwell time benefitting the shopping centre and the wider Wallsend area. We have simultaneously been working closely with the North Tyneside Council and other key stakeholders in the submission of a Portas Pilot Town Team bid which if successful will further accelerate regeneration in Wallsend." 

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For further information

NewRiver Retail Limited  David Lockhart, Chief Executive	Tel: [phone]
Pelham Bell Pottinger David Rydell/Rosanne Perry	Tel: [phone]
Cenkos Securities Ian Soanes/Max Hartley	Tel: [phone]

About NewRiver

NewRiver Retail Limited is a REIT status specialist real estate investor and asset manager focusing solely on the UK retailing sector with a particular focus on food and value retailing. The management team, led by David Lockhart, have more than 75 years' combined experience in UK commercial property markets. With assets under management at circa £275 million the Company's activities include active and entrepreneurial asset management and risk controlled development, utilising both its own balance sheet and co-investment joint venture structures. It is NewRiver's intention to become one of the leading sector-focused value-creating property investment businesses operating in the UK retail sector. The Company was founded in 2009 and its shares were admitted to London's AIM and Channel Islands Stock Exchange (CISX) in September of the same year. For more information on NewRiver, please visit www.nrr.co.uk.

 

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