Mason sells Atlantic Park office to housing group

Liverpool-based investors, Geoff Mason and family, have sold Atlantic House in Sefton to One Vision Housing for an undisclosed sum.

The 35,000 sq ft Grade A office building will become OVH's new headquarters when it relocates from Bootle in 2009.

OVH was formed in 2006 to manage housing stock formerly owned by Sefton council.

The Mason family said the sale represented the largest out of town office deal in Merseyside this year. OVH will be the first occupier at the new park, which has capacity for over 800,000 sq ft of commercial and industrial space on Dunnings Bridge Road.

The majority of the site is being developed by Royal London Asset Management. The Mason family retained sole ownership of a 1.4 acre plot and took the Atlantic House project forward alone.

The building has three floors and 109 car parking spaces. It is due for completion in October.

Andrew Mason said: "We're obviously delighted to complete the sale and see our vision come to life so quickly. The deal is fantastic news for Sefton and North Liverpool, not least because it shows such confidence in the area and will bring jobs and vitality to Atlantic Park.

"The location is superb and Atlantic House is a state-of-the art workplace, not least because it has impressive green credentials. The building utilises groundwater to assist with heating and cooling – a system that delivers energy cost savings of 30-40 per cent."

The project was financed with the support of Alan Bowers at Anglo Irish Bank in Liverpool and also benefited from European investment from the Objective One programme.

Alan Bowers at Anglo Irish Bank commented: "This was a demanding deal to deliver when assessed on finance on a 100 per cent spec basis however we had great faith in the promoters and the locale."

Joint agents Mason & Partners and Hitchcock Wright marketed Atlantic House.