Ian Austin, Minister for the West Midlands, was in Stoke-on-Trent today (24 September 2009) to officially open Northern Trust’s £6 million Genesis Centre, on the North Staffs Business Park at Chatterley Valley.
The 33,000 sq ft state-of-the-art serviced office centre was formally opened at a lunchtime reception hosted by Northern Trust, and was attended by local dignitaries, council representatives, and members of the local business community.
Ian Austin, Minister for the West Midlands, said: “The Genesis Centre shows the Government and agencies like Advantage West Midlands are working hard to build a stronger economy and bring new businesses and more jobs to Stoke-on-Trent and North Staffordshire. Along with the North Staffs Business Park enterprise units and the wider Chatterley Valley development, the Genesis Centre shows there is high quality office space for local companies and new businesses.”
Henriette Lyttle, Partnerships Director for Advantage West Midlands, said: “The opening of Genesis Centre is another key milestone in the redevelopment of Stoke-on-Trent and the wider North Staffordshire area. The strong business interest in the Genesis Centre suites is tremendously encouraging and a sign that North Staffordshire has a strong business base and a commitment to building to the highest design and sustainability standards.
“Alongside large regeneration programmes such as the University Quarter and the Central Business District, Chatterley Valley developments will help generate a world-class environment for business and will create good-quality jobs for local people.”
Regional development agency, Advantage West Midlands, has provided more than £2m for the North Staffs Business Park. The Government Office for the West Midlands has provided £2.3m of European Regional Development Fund monies for the wider development of Chatterley Valley (phase 1) of which North Staffs Business Park and Genesis Centre are part.
Mike Grindrod, Development Director at Northern Trust commented: “Genesis Centre forms part of Northern Trust’s £10 million investment at North Staffs Business Park, which also includes 27,500 sq ft of industrial space in Stoke-on-Trent, and is a welcome addition to the portfolio. The £6 million centre has been specifically designed to encourage new start up businesses and support small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in the Staffordshire region. With two tenants already in occupation and several more suites under offer, we are confident that Genesis Centre will prove a huge success.”
Genesis Centre provides fully serviced office space available as a single ‘hot desk’ or flexible suites ranging from those suitable for 2 persons (177 sq ft) up to 25 persons (1,838 sq ft). Offering an unrivalled business solution for start up and SME businesses, within a well-connected inspiring new building, the Centre has a range of products and services to support all types of business including leading edge telecoms and high speed broadband internet connection.
Occupiers of the building benefit from a managed reception and visitor welcome, as well as fully equipped and air conditioned meeting and conference facilities, on-site car parking, and 24 hour CCTV and access control system. The dedicated break out areas on each floor provide a more informal meeting area and these are located in the central core to encourage interaction between businesses and individuals within the centre to stimulate growth.
Northern Trust has worked closely with Stoke-on-Trent City Council, North Staffordshire Regeneration Partnership, and Advantage West Midlands to bring this development to fruition.
Brian Ward, Stoke-on-Trent City Council cabinet member for regeneration, said: “Genesis Centre is a welcome addition to Chatterley Valley and our portfolio of high quality serviced business accommodation. It will help to create new jobs and support through the vision and hard work of the North Staffordshire Regeneration Partnership”
Genesis Centre has been constructed to a high specification with energy efficiency and environmental considerations key factors in the final design of the centre. Several sustainable features including Ground Source Heat Pumps, Intelligent Lighting Controls and a Sustainable Drainage System have been incorporated in to the building to improve energy efficiency and reduce environmental impact, and as a result of these measures Genesis Centre has achieved an “Excellent” BREEAM rating.
For further information please visit www.genesis-centre.com.