Rushmoor Council acquires Farnborough shopping centre

By Tom Kilkelly

1 June 2023

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Meads and Kingsmead shopping centre

Rushmoor Borough Council has acquired the Meads and Kingsmead shopping centre in Farnborough town centre.

The council has appointed the property management team of Eddisons to run operations at the centre on a three year contract.

This appointment is the latest in a series of local authority contract wins for Eddisons, increasing the gross development value of public sector land and property on which it advises to over £1bn.

Head of property management at Eddisons Andrew Glover said: “This is an important win for the Eddisons property management team and shows our dedication and commitment to working closely with local authority regeneration teams.

“Rushmoor council has taken a bold and long-term strategic view with this acquisition, which will be pivotal to regenerating Farnborough and making it a better place to live, and we are really pleased to be supporting the local authority in ensuring the smooth running of the shopping centre and assisting them to achieve their aims for the town.”

Lambert Smith Hampton Investment Management, a company that specialises in advising local authorities in the UK, advised the council on the acquisition.

Managing director at Lambert Smith Hampton Sean Brew said: “It has been a pleasure working with Rushmoor Borough Council on this acquisition, which will be a valuable asset in the ongoing regeneration strategy for Farnborough.”

This acquisition is part of the Rushmoor Borough Council's plan to improve and regenerate Farnborough town centre. Two blocks of the Meads centre include a Sainsbury’s, a car park, neighbouring shops, a Travelodge, a Wetherspoons, a gym, and a play centre. A third block was cleared for redevelopment in 2020, while a fourth has planning consent for shops with offices or homes above. Kingsmead contains 24 shop units as well as a Vue cinema, with a business centre above it and a large car park.

Executive director at Rushmoor Borough Council Karen Edwards said: “Both Lambert Smith Hampton Investment Management and Eddisons’ expertise has proved invaluable to us in acquiring the asset and mobilising the management of it. Both teams have rapidly become integral to the Rushmoor regeneration team, supporting us with our improvement strategy for the town centre.

“We have been working closely together as part of an on-boarding process which will ensure the seamless handover of the shopping centre’s operation and enabling the property management team to hit the ground running from day one.”

By Tom Kilkelly

Tom Kilkelly started working as a freelance journalist for The Business Magazine following his graduation from UCL in 2022.

During his studies Tom became very interested in the works of Irish authors including Samuel Beckett and Flann O'Brien (Brian O'Nolan).

His current role as a freelance business reporter is his first exposure to the world of business journalism. Working at TBM has given Tom the chance to really get to grips with the goings-on in the business hive that is the South East.