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Life Science REIT buys Oxford Technology Park in £183m deal

Oxfordshire’s chronic shortage of life sciences space will be eased following the acquisition and redevelopment of Oxford Technology Park.

In May, Life Science REIT, the real estate investment trust focused on UK life science properties, acquired Oxford Technology Park in a deal that could reach up to £183 million.

Once fully developed, the 20-acre science and technology park will offer up to 450,000 sq ft of mixed-use life science space and amenities.

The park, the first buildings of which have already been completed, is less than two miles from Oxford University’s Begbroke Science Park campus, seven miles north of Oxford city centre and right next to London Oxford Airport.

Oxford Technology Park was acquired for £120.3 million from Angus and Alicia Bates, who have owned and developed the park since 2007.

The first two of 11 units are already complete with one fully let to The Native Antigen Company, a supplier of highquality infectious disease reagents.

Five further units are due to be completed this year and the final four units during 2023. The acquisition also includes a hotel, let to leading provider Premier Inn until 2045.

Milton Park’s Bee House collaborative workspace opens

After a £12.4 million refurbishment, Milton Park’s new collaborative workspace has opened.

Christened The Bee House, 140 Eastern Avenue has been sustainably repurposed, which has meant the construction saved a high percentage of embodied energy within the fabric of the building, reduced demolition waste and minimised the need for new materials.

The new building is packed with sustainable innovations. It’s electrically cooled and heated using a green renewable energy tari and has a sustainable urban drainage system that will attract wildlife and help prevent flooding. Space previously used for car-parking has been replaced to make room for bioretention swales to clean water from areas of paving and half of the building’s roof. A gravel mulch system will reduce the need for weeding and keep moisture within the soil. A series of moss walls and living plants bring the outdoors inside.

A water course previously screened by the parking area has been opened up to create a new wildflower meadow, designed to attract bees and other pollinators. A bespoke bee hotel has also been introduced.

Milton Park is currently home to two separate beehives, with plans to increase this to four later in the year. Once ready, the team at Milton Park hope to harvest the honey generated from the beehives and give jars away to occupiers.