Alinor Capital and its operating partner Oval Real Estate have acquired Manchester office block 1 Tony Wilson Place from a client of Aberdeen.
Alinor and Oval plan on undertaking a £34m investment and renewal plan, which will deliver 167,000 sq ft of refurbished grade-A workspace back into the Manchester market in mid-2027.
The refurbished scheme on First Street will also feature retail space and amenity space including a modernised reception and central atrium, a business lounge, a gym and wellness facility and an exclusive roof terrace.
The building was developed by Ask in 2008 and was initially occupied by Manchester City Council. It anchored the subsequent mixed-use evolution of the wider First Street project.
The transaction was made off-market and a price was not disclosed, but Aberdeen put the property on the market in May 2023 for £52.5m. The building, then let to Auto Trader, Jacobs and Ford’s FCE Bank, had an average unexpired lease term of 3.4 years to expiry, with passing income of £4,485,619 a year reflecting an average rent of £25.64/sq ft.
Oval chief investment officer Will Parry said: “We are delighted to have secured the acquisition of 1 Tony Wilson Place, reinforcing our confidence in Manchester as a leading UK commercial centre. Our plans will deliver a high-quality, grade-A office through a comprehensive refurbishment, creating a modern, sustainable workspace aligned with the needs of today’s occupiers. We look forward to relaunching the building in 2027.”
Alinor Capital co-founder and partner Michael Sutton added: “Combining our investment expertise with Oval’s operational acumen underpins our confidence in the building’s re-emergence as a highly attractive office asset in a resilient local market with limited comparable supply.”
Alinor, a value-oriented investment firm specialising in European alternative credit, last month bought another office, The Bond in Glasgow, for more than £15m in partnership with Sterling Property Ventures.
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