Bournemouth Business Centre
27 November 2004 - 12:56AM
RNS Non-Regulatory
Basepoint PLC
26 November 2004
Basepoint plc opens New Business Centre at Bournemouth
The Mayor of Christchurch, Councillor Sue Spittle, on Wednesday officially
opened the latest Business, Innovation and Enterprise Centre (MBEC) to be
designed and built by AIM-listed specialists Basepoint plc.
The Bournemouth Business Centre is the third MBEC to be completed under the
Limited Partnership agreement established in April 2003 between Basepoint plc
and the Kodak Pension Plan, and in which Basepoint plc retains a 25%
shareholding. Under this agreement Basepoint Developments Ltd, a wholly owned
subsidiary of Basepoint plc, receives fees for managing the development of new
MBECs and additional procurement fees linked to the completion of new centres.
Thereafter Basepoint acts as manager of the centres held within the Partnership
and receives management fees on that basis.
Positioned within an 80-hectare business park next to Bournemouth's rapidly
expanding regional airport, the new MBEC is purpose-built to provide high
quality office and studio facilities for eighty-one small and growing
businesses, acting as a hub for entrepreneurial activity and small business
development in the south Dorset region. The Centre management is already
developing links with local business support agencies as well as Bournemouth
University with the intention of gaining maximum leverage for its capability to
provide first class incubation facilities for start-ups and spin-offs from
academic institutions.
In his remarks at the opening ceremony, Basepoint Chief Executive Rob Cleaver
thanked all those that had worked towards the successful completion of the
Centre and went on to note that although others had tried to copy the Basepoint
formula, none had managed to recreate the embracing and supportive environment
that characterised Basepoint MBECs across the South. He also observed that
taxation and regulation were increasingly becoming a burden to all those in the
small business sector, but that he hoped the Chancellor would continue to do his
best to keep the bureaucratic expansion under control.
The new Business Centre has already welcomed a number of tenants since its doors
first opened in October, and the flow of enquiries continues to be highly
encouraging. With the units offering floor areas from 17m(2) to 74 m(2) the
centre can host businesses ranging in size from sole traders to those requiring
space for ten employees or more. The interlinking of adjacent units can allow
the accommodation of firms of even greater size. The site is secure, has ample
parking, and offers the same 'easy-in, easy-out' terms to tenants as are
available at all Basepoint centres.
Notes:
Basepoint plc (symbol: BNT) specialises in the development and operation of
Managed Business, Innovation and Enterprise Centres in Central Southern and the
South-East of England. These centres provide comprehensive accommodation and
support infrastructure packages to new and early stage companies within a
supportive and secure environment. Following the completion of the facility at
Bournemouth, Basepoint now has fourteen wholly or part-owned centres currently
operational with a further three at varying stages of development as well as a
number of other locations currently under assessment.
www.basepoint.co.uk
Contact details;
Robert Cleaver, Chief Executive, Basepoint plc
David Boakes, Finance Director, Basepoint plc
Tel. 01962 842244
Matt Johnson, Gladstone Public Relations
Tel. 01962 820358
This information is provided by RNS
The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
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