The gateway to a new beginning

The looms have fallen silent, but the industrial complex in Halifax, West Yorkshire, is about to enjoy a new lease of life as the property market picks up.

St James Securities has started to turn the 190-year-old complex into a place to live and work.

Leeds-based St James, which secured planning permission for the 10-acre site in 2008, has started to refurbish Shaw Lodge House at the gateway of the site.

The 4,000 sq ft Grade II listed office building is being converted into 10 office suites. A nearby garage has been demolished to make way for parking.

The suites will be available by the end of the year and are aimed at the small business and start-up market.

Oliver Quarmby, of St James Securities, said: "This will provide an attractive gateway and shows that we are moving forward on site.

"As we come out of the recession, we expect companies will start searching for high quality, affordable space. In

the longer term, we are looking to create an urban village on

this site."

Mr Quarmby said it was wise to proceed carefully as the property market begins to recover from a deep recession.

He added: "Ultimately, it would be tremendous to have people both living and working on this historic site.

"The redevelopment of the rest of the site will be spearheaded by commercial developments so that the original plans for dozens of houses, retirement homes, a health centre, restaurant, shops and even a hotel can be revived in time."

There are already 15 tenants on site, ranging from community and educational organisations, such as the West Riding Stonecarving Association,

to companies such as the telecommunications firm TTG (UK).

Once the refurbishment of Shaw Lodge House has been completed, St James Securities is planning to convert the six-storey 1850 Mill to offices. The 1850 Mill will cater for larger offices of between 3,000 sq ft and 10,000 sq ft on whole floors, providing up to 46,038 sq ft of offices in the building in total.

The mills were founded in the 1820s by John Holdsworth and remained in the ownership of the same family until 2005. The main product woven at the complex was moquette, used for covering seats on trains and buses across the world. The mills closed in September 2008.