St Modwen buys precinct in Farnworth

The regeneration firm has completed a £4m acquisition of The Market Precinct in Farnworth, near Bolton.

The acquired site includes 21 units, let to a range of national and local retailers, and is located on Brackley Street in Farnworth between the town's open market and bus station and fronting the town's main shopping precinct.

Edinburgh-based niche fund manager Ediston Properties appointed Jones Lang LaSalle to sell the multi-let shopping precinct in June last year.

Michelle Taylor, North West regional director at St Modwen, said: "Farnworth Market Precinct provides a secure rental income with numerous opportunities to add value and improve the convenience shopping offer in Farnworth. As such, it will complement St Modwen's UK-wide retail portfolio which, under our management, continues to perform strongly with high occupancy and robust rental levels.

"Farnworth town centre is benefiting from considerable investment at the moment, including a new college campus, and so we see a real opportunity to bring our regeneration expertise to bear upon the precinct's future prosperity. We will look to work closely with Bolton Council and other stakeholders to identify opportunities to continue driving positive change in the area."

Watkin Jones also started work on a new £18m Tesco store in Farnworth, comprising 70,000 sq ft on Longcauseway, in October last year.

King Sturge acted for St Modwen in the deal.