A weekly round up of the latest planning and property news from the central London boroughs

Camden 

Construction Enquirer reports that King’s Cross Central Limited Partnership (KCCLP) has appointed McLaren Construction as main contractor on its latest commercial and residential development at the 67-acre central London site. The new R8 building will comprise two 13-storey blocks linked by a two-storey podium garden with landscaped roof gardens for users of both buildings. To the east is a residential building of 72 apartments and the western block contains 170,000 sq ft of office space with retail on the ground floor. KCCLP has entered into a management agreement with The Office Group, the premium flexible workspace provider, which will see them partner to create the largest – and the first purpose-built – design-led, flexible workspace in King’s Cross within these new buildings.

Architects Journal reports Developer Dominvs Group has now submitted designs by Stiff + Trevillion for a new student accommodation block to replace Citicape House, an office building on Holborn Viaduct. According to the company, the 656 student flats are a ‘better fit’ for the site and will address the City of London Corporation’s need for student housing. The change of use means its original plan for a huge green wall designed by ANS Global was ‘no longer feasible’, due to the ban on combustible materials for residential buildings above 18m. Stiff + Trevillion’s scheme includes two basement levels, a lower ground floor and 12 upper floors. Landscape architect JCLA has designed a public rooftop garden with a semi-intensive green roof, a bio-solar green roof and a water garden.

City of London

Building reports that Heritage groups say ’overbearing’ 21-storey block would harm neighbouring 1932 Daily Express building. Heritage groups have called for the height of a proposed Bjarke Ingels Group-designed office block on Fleet Street in the City of London to be lowered because of its impact on nearby buildings. The art deco-inspired proposals would see the existing River Court Building, the former home of Goldman Sachs, flattened and replaced by a 21-storey block featuring a series of stepped roof terraces.

Hackney 

Property Week reports that Workspace Group has acquired Stapleton House, known as ‘The Old Dairy’, in Shoreditch, east London for £43.38m. The building is 80% let and is and is being acquired at a net initial yield of 4.9% and a capital value of £761/sq ft. The 57,000 sq ft building is near Workspace’s business centre, The Frames, which opened in 2017. Workspace chief executive Graham Clemett said: “We see tremendous opportunity to generate long-term value by repositioning the property over time to our distinctive flexible model. I am confident that together with The Frames, The Old Dairy will be a hub for Shoreditch’s dynamic SME scene for years to come.”

Property Week reports that Aviva Investors has acquired Curtain House, a multi-let building in Hoxton, London N1, for an undisclosed sum. The building is a grade II-listed, five-storey Victorian warehouse building in Shoreditch, London’s hub for technology business and creative industries. Aviva Investors said it will undertake an extensive refurbishment and decarbonisation programme of Curtain House, which will aim to raise the building’s EPC rating from its current ‘E’ grade to a targeted EPC ‘A’ rating. George Fraser-Harding, fund manager at Aviva Investors, said: “With the built environment responsible for a significant portion of UK emissions, it is imperative that existing building stock is brought up to today’s exacting standards through retrofitting energy-efficient technologies, leading to an overall reduction in carbon from the sector.”

Islington 

Architects Journal reports that PLP Architects has revealed designs for a major new office scheme next to Holborn Viaduct in the City if London. The scheme, for developer Royal London Asset Management, involves redeveloping buildings by the Grade II-listed cast-iron viaduct and the gatehouses which provide access to Farringdon Street below. The project involves the demolition of tp bennett’s 1970s Kimberley House and a pair of Portland stone office buildings dating from 1921-22. The scheme introduces entrances at two levels – one on Farringdon Street and another at the Holborn Viaduct level – and would create a new public route and a lift to improve connectivity.

Southwark 

Architects Journal reports that A team featuring dRMM, Adam Khan Architects and AJ 40 under 40 star JA Projects has won a competition to redesign the Tustin Estate on Old Kent Road in Southwark. The trio was selected from an undisclosed shortlist to win the Southwark Council-backed commission to redesign the 4.7ha site. The mixed-tenure, residential-led Tustin Estate scheme comprises council homes, shared equity homes and key worker accommodation. There will also be homes for private sale to raise funds for the council housing. A new primary school will be provided along with commercial space and a new park at the centre of the estate.

Tower Hamlets 

Architects Journal reports that CZWG has obtained planning approval for a 1,972-home masterplan on the Isle of Dogs in east London. The practice submitted a hybrid application for the 4.5ha East Ferry Road site in 2019. It proposed 10 buildings up to 32 storeys tall. The masterplan also includes a major supermarket and a new primary school designed by McGuirk Watson. The 220,000m² plans replace Broadway Malyan’s designs for 850 homes on the same site, north of Mudchute Park and Farm. The CZWG scheme will have 370 affordable homes, more than the 224 in the Broadway Malyan scheme. However, this means just 25 per cent of all homes in the new scheme will be affordable, compared with the 31 per cent affordable housing offered in the earlier scheme.

Wandsworth 

Property Week reports that Real estate capital advisory LEXI Finance has structured an £11m blended loan on behalf of a private London-based housebuilder to support its development of 29 new-build apartments in Wandsworth, south London. The loan is made up of a senior development facility, provided by United Trust Bank and mezzanine finance from a private family office. The loan will enable the developer to demolish the existing disused commercial building and build 29 apartments in a residential block that also contains a roof terrace and communal space. The development will contain 24 private and five affordable units, and will help Wandsworth Council on the way to achieving its target of delivering 2,800 new affordable homes in the borough between 2019 and 2023.

City of Westminster 

Construction Enquirer reports that Ardmore has started a landmark mixed-use luxury redevelopment of a former NCP car park in Mayfair, west London. The builder has mobilised on the Carrington Street site to build 30 super-prime homes, gym and restaurant, a 2,400 sq m art gallery and 5,000 sq m of office and commercial space. The redevelopment designed by AHMM includes two blocks of up to eight storeys, formed in both concrete and steel frames, linked by a three-storey basement, that required 30,000 cubic metres of bulk excavation. Patrick Byrne, Ardmore Managing Director, said: “We are excited to finally start works at the Carrington Street project that will set a new quality benchmark for Mayfair.”

Property Week reports that Private investment house Ardian has re-signed its lease for its office space at One Grafton Street in Mayfair. Pembroke has agreed with Ardian a new 10-year lease to take its existing office space spanning 23,400 sq ft in the affluent central London address. Pembroke recently completed a programme of refurbishing works at the mixed-use building to include a reception area. One Grafton Street comprises modern offices, three ground-floor luxury retail units and a three-bed apartment across 580,000 sq ft.