It was another coup for the site’s co-owners Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) and Hermes Real Estate, which last year secured Leeds’ largest-ever pre-let – a 378,000 sq ft letting for a new regional government hub, which is expected to be operational some time next year.

More than 800,000 sq ft of office and leisure space has been completed at Wellington Place, which according to an independent report commissioned by the development partners has contributed a total economic value of £200m to the region. When the government departments move into the site, Wellington Place’s current workforce of around 4,800 will grow to more than 11,000.

The 18-acre site has come a long way since the mid-2000s when it was home to a retail warehouse scheme. Around that time, Hermes started looking at different options for the location and brought on board MEPC.