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Sinclair Clark have been appointed as joint agents with Knight Frank by Abstract Security to market 9–16 Dingwall Road, adjacent to east Croydon station. Abstract is proposing a new 100,000 sq ft grade A office scheme at an initial rent of £22 per sq ft. News of Abstract’s investment in Croydon follows hot on the heels of Westfield’s announcement that Australian developer Westfield had entered talks to bring forward a major redevelopment of the south London town’s Whitgift Centre.

On Tuesday the Develop Croydon conference was also lifted by news that the GLA had set aside £23m to invest in Croydon following the August riots that damaged the town centre.

Take up of new space in Croydon has sunk to a record low of 61,000 sq ft so far this year, down on the 124,561 sq ft seen last year and the average pre-2008 five-year take up of 275,000 sq ft. According to agent Sinclair Clark, underlying this however there has been 1m sq ft of lease renewals in the last 15 months with major occupiers such as Mott McDonald, Mondial, Network Rail and AIG either having re geared their leases or entering into talks to do so.

There are a series of unsatisfied demands from significant long-term occupiers in Croydon for Grade A space, most notably from Nestle.

Established in April 2000 by former Akeler chief Mark Glatman, the Abstract group of companies brings together combined experience of over 6m sq ft of business space development across the UK and Mark Glatman, chief executive of Abstract Securities, said: “We have now exchanged a contract to purchase a site in East Croydon, just minutes from the train station, on which we will speculatively build 100,000 sq ft net of ‘Grade A’ office space. “We are at a point in time where, although quality and environmental performance remain key drivers for corporate occupiers, value for money is fundamental. By exercising tight design and procurement processes – especially in the purchase of land at the lowest point in the development cycle – we are able to bring both our Croydon and Glasgow developments to the market at exceptional rental costs, significantly undercutting both local markets, and with occupational costs that are likely to be lower than even refurbished second hand space. “Opportunities to locate to such high-quality space at such reduced costs – in Croydon – will be rare, perhaps even non-existent, in coming years, so we anticipate high demand for both schemes, particularly with Croydon set to benefit from extensive investment over coming years.”