Progeny set to move to new Walker Morris office building in Leeds

Progeny has confirmed it has sublet 13,000 sq ft in the new Walker Morris building on Wellington Street, Leeds, and will move out of its current home on Park Place.

Fox Lloyd Jones (FLJ), acting on behalf of Walker Morris, acquired an overriding lease over the whole of the 76,000 sq ft landmark building in 2018, and project-managed the delivery of the new offices through to completion.

Having facilitated the physical move of the Walker Morris team into 63,000 sq ft in August 2019, FLJ was then tasked with sub-letting the remaining 13,000 sq ft offices, which were surplus to initial requirements but offered the law firm future expansion space.

Walker Morris’s old building in Leeds sold last week for £12m.

Progeny will take up residency in March. The impact on jobs is at this stage unclear.

Speaking about the letting, Nick Salkeld, director of Fox Lloyd Jones, said: “The Leeds office market is extremely buoyant, particularly for high quality space, leading to an acute shortage of supply.

“Indeed, there is less than six months’ worth of Grade A accommodation available now, with the annual take up in 2019 expected to be well above the ten-year average at approximately 700k sq ft.

“One area that is enjoying great success and ongoing investment is the West End of Leeds, with major developments such as GPU hub at Wellington Place and the Grainger PRS scheme on the former Yorkshire Post site, alongside several other planned developments.

“We knew we would not be short of interest.

“Progeny were first to react and, in so doing, have secured excellent offices before the range of options reduces further.”