City lease renewal shows confidence in city centre as key business hub

27/01/2023
Bridge House

ABERDEEN-based Bridge House Investments has announced renewed long-term leases with two key tenants, securing the future of a landmark city centre building.

Bridge House, located at 56-58 Bridge Street, is set to undergo a quarter of a million-pound investment to renovate and modernise the premises.

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The six-floor office building forms part of the Aberdeen Conservation Area and was once the location of iconic Aberdeen business, John Bell Antiques in the mid 1900’s.

More recently, the building has been home to business and marine travel specialist ATPI and Solab, a well-established IT Services and software company. 

Both these businesses have confirmed their commitment to the city centre by extending their respective leases for 10 years.  

Bridge House Investments’ spokesman Iain Hawthorne, said, “We’re really pleased to have secured further lease periods from our two blue chip tenants.

“We have worked with both businesses for several years during the ups and downs of the oil and gas business and the changing face of the city centre.  As owners of the building, we continue to invest in the fabric and presentation of the premises and are in the process of a £250k investment to ensure that Bridge House remains an attractive option close to the city centre and transport infrastructure.”

Kevin Coll, Managing Director, Solab, said: “Solab is a proud advocate for city centre businesses operations in Aberdeen and the central location works well for our entire team. Bridge House has excellent digital infrastructure and its location and access to parking has made it an ideal base from which to grow our business over the last three decades. We hope our continued investment helps attract other companies into the city centre to secure its future.”

Russell Borthwick, Chief Executive, Aberdeen & Grampian Chamber of Commerce, commented: “It’s a further piece of good news for the city centre that Solab and ATPI have chosen to invest in a long-term commitment to their Bridge Street premises.

“Towns and cities everywhere are seeking to adapt to the changing environment and as we continue the process of reinventing Aberdeen city centre, it’s vital that we create places where people will want to spend leisure time, live and work.

“This announcement is another important piece of the jigsaw with two high profile businesses making a statement about their commitment to providing high quality workspace for their staff in an iconic building in the heart of Aberdeen.” 

ATPI Managing Director, UK, Adam Knights, added: “ATPI are delighted to have re-signed our lease on a long-term basis at Bridge House. 

“We considered a number of satellite business parks in our review process and ultimately decided that the city centre location provided us the right location to access our entire customer base.  

“We have a long-term relationship with our landlords and have jointly invested in the internal infrastructure to improve the working environment for our staff.  We look forward to continuing this over the coming years”.

In addition to the lease extensions, one floor of approximately 2,000 square feet is undergoing extensive ‘good as new’ refurbishment and will be available for a discerning tenant to take possession in the next few weeks.  FG Burnett is marketing the available floor and would be pleased to hear from potential tenants, who could customise any aspect of the refurbishment if preferred.

Prospective tenants should direct all enquiries to Lisa Cowie, FG Burnett –[email protected] or call 01224 572661.

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