Construction of phase two of Freemans Reach has been completed, paving the way for the development to become the new home of Her Majesty’s Passport Office in Durham City.
Representatives from HM Passport Office joined members of the Carillion Arlington Richardsons Development Partnership, the consortium behind the regeneration of Durham’s Riverside, to celebrate the building handover.
Following an internal fit out programme, HM Passport Office’s 1100 strong workforce, currently based on the opposite side of the River Wear in Milburngate House, will transfer across to the contemporary and energy-efficient 68,000 sq. ft. building in the coming months.
The development has excellent environmental credentials, which enabled Freemans Reach to be awarded an ‘A+’ Rated Energy Performance Certificate and BREEAM* Excellent status. It has also become the first UK city centre development to incorporate a fully-operational hydro-power generator.
Utilising energy from the River Wear, an Archimedean screw drives a generator, which feeds the National Grid with power that is the equivalent of 75 percent of the energy requirements of Freeman’s Reach.
Alongside the new offices, Freemans Reach will offer improved visitor amenities, particularly for those arriving by coach. It will feature daytime and evening café/restaurant facilities and has a new tree-lined Riverside Walk.
HM Passport Office’s relocation to Freemans Reach, which follows National Savings and Investments move from Milburngate House to Phase One, in May 2015, enables the next significant stage in the regeneration of Durham’s Riverside.
A planning application will be submitted shortly to transform the Milburngate House site into a premium development featuring a quality mix of homes, offices, bars, restaurants and a boutique cinema.
Neil McMillan, Development Director at Carillion, said: “The completion of Phase 2 of Freemans Reach is a fundamental milestone in the regeneration of Durham City’s Riverside. We are very proud to hand over the building, on time, to HM Passport Office and help maintain this essential public service’s long association with Durham City.
“Freemans Reach is part of a wider strategy to improve Durham’s Riverside and have the plans in place, subject to receiving planning consent, to embark on the regeneration of Milburngate creating a premium development that will add value to the city and become a destination of regional significance.”
Allan Cook, Managing Director of Arlington Real Estate, added: “This is another significant milestone in the redevelopment of Durham City’s Riverside. Our team have worked extremely hard to ensure Freemans Reach became the location of choice for both HM Passport Office and National Savings and Investment as it was essential for Durham that we retained over 1,000 high quality jobs in the city.
“The quality and sustainability of Freemans Reach also demonstrates our ambitions for Durham’s Riverside, which will continue with the development of Milburngate on the opposite bank of the river.”
Janine Bonnick, North East Area Operations Manager for HM Passport Office, said: “Freemans Reach is a great asset, which will provide our team with a great working environment and open space, conducive to collaboration. What makes the development even more impressive, are its green credentials that have created a sustainable and future-proof building. The collaboration between HM Passport Office and the developers has been very successful and played a significant part in the building being completed on time.”