NEWS ARCHIVE
TOLWORTH TOWER ACQUISITION | 04/07/06
Norfolk based property group Targetfollow has bought another landmark office tower in the London area in a deal worth in the region of £60m.
The group this week
Targetfollow’s latest deal comes only months after it bought the iconic 32-floor Centre Point building in the West End of London for £85m. Both Centre Point and Tolworth Tower were built in the early 1960s from reinforced concrete and designed by pioneering architect Richard Seifert.
The Norwich-based group’s growing portfolio in the London area already includes prominent office towers such as Wembley Point in Wembley and International House in Marylebone.
Tolworth Tower comprises offices, retail, hotel and leisure uses with a total net internal area of 306,829 sq ft (28,505 sq m), as well as a 175-space car park. Existing office occupiers include Close Brothers, Close Asset Finance, Amec Developments, Transoceanic Projects and the Crown Prosecution Service.
The retail element of the complex is anchored by a Marks & Spencer food store, Boots the Chemist, and the Broadway Bar Café along with a number of other high street retailers and a health club. There is also a Travelodge Hotel within the complex, which provides 132 bedrooms and meeting room facilities.
Martin Sleeuw, Targetfollow’s associate director (group portfolio management), said: “This is a fantastic purchase for us because of opportunities to substantially enhance rental income immediately through refurbishment and letting, possible expansion of the Travelodge Hotel, current rent reviews and lease renewals and proactive operation of the car park.” He added: “In addition we are investigating the opportunities for further development on the site in the future.”
Tolworth Tower occupies a prominent position on the A3 Kingston bypass,
strategically situated for easy access to central London and the main motorway networks. Completed in 1963, it made national headlines as the tallest and largest office development in the Home Counties - its 21 storeys soaring 235ft above the Kingston bypass.
On the edge of London, the building allowed hundreds of office staff to work closer to home without commuting. With a large Fine Fare supermarket and car park, it also offered Britons an early taste of American-style out-of-town shopping.
Tolworth Tower was owned for many years by Postel, which relaunched it in 1991 after a major refurbishment. It was later acquired by Treasury Holdings.
The Targetfollow Group, established in February 2001 and based in Riverside Road, Norwich, was formed to specialise in acquiring and managing investment and development properties across the UK.
Today Targetfollow’s portfolio includes office, industrial and retail buildings in more than 20 towns and cities. It has about 200 staff, 70 of whom are based at the Norwich headquarters.