A prominent building at the heart of Grimsby town centre has hit the market.
St James House, looking over Grimsby Minster and owned by the Parochial Church Council, is being put forward for residential conversion or office redevelopment.
Dating back more than 50 years, it was built as part of the Bull Ring redevelopment, and the sale comes after another transformation of the open space outside.
Plans for it to be demolished had been considered by the local authority as part of the most recent regeneration, but the scope of works has changed as the Town Deal pilot progressed.
Lawrence Brown, managing partner at commercial property agency Scotts, is handling the sale, with a guide price of £400,000.
He said: “St James House offers nearly 10,000 sq ft of accommodation in a superb location in the heart of the town centre. Major redevelopment works have just been completed in St James Square and there has also been a recent announcement of the proposed redevelopment of part of Freshney Place. As such, the building offers scope to be redeveloped for numerous uses.”
The substantial red brick building’s ground floor provides a small office suite together with car parking for approximately 30 vehicles, accessed from Cartergate.
The first floor offers a range of small offices and large open area with the second floor currently let to North East Lincolnshire Council, though not in occupation. The third floor features a former caretaker’s flat.
Mr Brown said: “This area has seen a lot of re-development recently; Wilkin Chapman’s offices were built on Cartergate a few years ago and I .understand the council is looking at opportunities for further development on the land next to them. The council has recently spent money on St James Square and I think this building could either be refurbished as offices or converted into a number of apartments. It's rare to find a town centre building with so much car parking, offering such huge potential.”
He added that the church feels a “moral and social responsibility in terms of their standing in Grimsby and Cleethorpes” and want to make sure it contributes to the area while fulfilling a function, adding that there was flexibility in approach.
