WECA asked to leave its home

[whole diary]

[infoman]

https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/landlord-tells-weca-leave-hq-6954919

[TaplowGreen]

I am sure they can find somewhere cheaper, given that they are spending council taxpayers money it's incumbent on them to do so.

I would imagine a building in that location is extremely expensive compared to somewhere nearer the outskirts.

[Western Pathfinder]

Somewhere near Pilning,would be useful ,might get the station a replacement footbridge!

[johnneyw]

Somewhere near Pilning,would be useful ,might get the station a replacement footbridge!

That got me thinking that the same could apply to AZTEC West.

[Bmblbzzz]

Aztec seems a somewhat more likely site to find suitable building than Pilning!

[Red Squirrel]

I attended a talk organised by Bristol Civic Society a few weeks ago, by a Commercial Lettings specialist. Quite an eye-opener.

In the Bristol area (it may be different in London and other places) out of town office space is indeed a lot cheaper than space in the central area. This very much gives the lie to those who claim that Bristol's 'anti car' (i.e. pro-people) policies are driving business away, as anyone who walks around the town during the day could tell you. One of the reason that 'in town' office space is at a premium, despite plentiful supply, is that working in town gives people choices: there are dozens of places to eat lunch (or go shopping during the lunch break), and there are parks and (free) museums. After work, people have the option to stay in town for whatever entertainment appeals to them. People want to work there.

Out-of-town offices, on the other hand, tend to be inward-looking and self-contained. People almost always drive there, use the on-site shop or sandwich bar at lunchtime, and then drive home.

It is of course right that the Combined Authority should seek the best deal for its office accommodation. But is it better for them to be based in the central area, where many of them will use public transport and be part of the urban community, or in a cheap car-centric business park on the urban fringe?

[infoman]

If your going for Pilining,I am going for Parson Street, the only train station in the Bristol area with no step free access.

[TaplowGreen]

Out-of-town offices, on the other hand, tend to be inward-looking and self-contained. People almost always drive there, use the on-site shop or sandwich bar at lunchtime, and then drive home.

It is of course right that the Combined Authority should seek the best deal for its office accommodation. But is it better for them to be based in the central area, where many of them will use public transport and be part of the urban community, or in a cheap car-centric business park on the urban fringe?

All anecdotal of course, and to be fair it's all moot given the effect of the huge increase in home/hybrid working going forward which means that there won't need to be anything like as much accommodation for the office wallahs , providing a welcome saving for many organisations - Local authorities and all those spending public money should be at the forefront of this, particularly in the current environment.

[Noggin]

In the Bristol area (it may be different in London and other places) out of town office space is indeed a lot cheaper than space in the central area. This very much gives the lie to those who claim that Bristol's 'anti car' (i.e. pro-people) policies are driving business away, as anyone who walks around the town during the day could tell you. One of the reason that 'in town' office space is at a premium, despite plentiful supply, is that working in town gives people choices: there are dozens of places to eat lunch (or go shopping during the lunch break), and there are parks and (free) museums. After work, people have the option to stay in town for whatever entertainment appeals to them. People want to work there.

Out-of-town offices, on the other hand, tend to be inward-looking and self-contained. People almost always drive there, use the on-site shop or sandwich bar at lunchtime, and then drive home.

Based on my own experience of 'white-collar', tech and creative businesses, younger people tend to need/want to be in the office, at least part of the time.  They need supervision, they want to socialise, they don't have space at home to work etc. Furthermore, they tend to like working centrally, many don't drive and they want to do the fun stuff that Red Squirrel mentions above around work.

Once people get older, the fun stuff matters less, they want to live in houses with gardens close to good schools for their kids, they have space and prefer the flexibility of working from home, whilst the geography of suburbia suits the car and makes driveable offices more attractive.

This is very visible in my own company, with a big 'out of town' glass box suiting the old guys but making it hard to attract and retain young talent.

[ChrisB]

The problem comes when the latter group are supervising the former group….and don’tvwant to do this in the office 5 days/week

[TonyK]

I attended a talk organised by Bristol Civic Society a few weeks ago, by a Commercial Lettings specialist. Quite an eye-opener.

In the Bristol area (it may be different in London and other places) out of town office space is indeed a lot cheaper than space in the central area. This very much gives the lie to those who claim that Bristol's 'anti car' (i.e. pro-people) policies are driving business away, as anyone who walks around the town during the day could tell you. One of the reason that 'in town' office space is at a premium, despite plentiful supply, is that working in town gives people choices: there are dozens of places to eat lunch (or go shopping during the lunch break), and there are parks and (free) museums. After work, people have the option to stay in town for whatever entertainment appeals to them. People want to work there.

Out-of-town offices, on the other hand, tend to be inward-looking and self-contained. People almost always drive there, use the on-site shop or sandwich bar at lunchtime, and then drive home.

It is of course right that the Combined Authority should seek the best deal for its office accommodation. But is it better for them to be based in the central area, where many of them will use public transport and be part of the urban community, or in a cheap car-centric business park on the urban fringe?

When I worked in the city centre, I used to grab a sandwich at the shop across the street most days I was in the office, then head for home at all speed at the earliest possible opportunity. I must have been the exception. But the point remains a good one in that city centres are generally nicer places to work that the estate a mile off the bus route, and I did walk, cycle or catch the bus if I was in for a full day.

Within its fiefdom, WECA^» (West of England Combined Authority - about) has the choice of two city centres, a sea front at the end of a single track railway, or whatever is at the middle of South Glos. The Bristol centred accusation was levelled at Avon, and not without cause, although Avon had a wider remit than does WECA and the non-Bristol bits were smaller. The nature of work is different now than it was then, and a lot could probably be done anywhere, rather than setting up shop in Bath, Thornbury or (shudder) Yate, then having to pay expenses and travelling time to get the 80% of staff who live in Bristol to attend. I have seen how that works on a practical level, especially when the employer encourages the use of public transport. I'm not taking a view on the best location, because it will definitely be the wrong place in many eyes.

And some will be surprised to find that WECA is currently based in Bristol, not on one of the moons of Neptune.

[Bmblbzzz]

My brother-in-law's office was recently moved, following a company takeover, from Queen Square to Aztec West. I mentioned this to a friend, who said "That's a bit of a step down." BiL, who is definitely in the older group (but no longer bothered about eg schools cos his kids have grown up) feels the same. But he's not hugely bothered because he's still mostly working from home and although he misses the social side of being in the office, he now hopes he can eke this out till he retires in a few years.

[TonyK]

My brother-in-law's office was recently moved, following a company takeover, from Queen Square to Aztec West. I mentioned this to a friend, who said "That's a bit of a step down." BiL, who is definitely in the older group (but no longer bothered about eg schools cos his kids have grown up) feels the same. But he's not hugely bothered because he's still mostly working from home and although he misses the social side of being in the office, he now hopes he can eke this out till he retires in a few years.

I missed the social side when I retired, as well as the tea and my afternoon naps.

[Bmblbzzz]

aka "power naps" 

[TonyK]

aka "power naps" 

Just naps in my case.