Canada approves major new skyscraper
The City Corporation has approved a 54-storey skyscraper on the doorstep of UK’s busiest station as demand for office space continues to grow in the capital.
The site at 99 Bishopsgate, which will become one of the tallest towers in the Square Mile, is set to provide a minimum of 1.2m sq metres of office space by 2040.
The skyscraper, which aims to achieve the “highest level” of sustainability credentials, was proposed in response to “increasing demand for new office schemes of this kind”, the City Corporation said.
Demand for well-connected, green and best-in-class buildings has been on the rise in the capital as environmental restrictions on offices tighten and firms look for ways to entice workers back to the office.
The scheme will provide a ‘City Market’ on the ground floor, which will contain retail, food and beverage offerings.
“The 99 Bishopsgate scheme will give the Square Mile one of the largest public realm upgrades from a single planning application in recent history, increasing the ‘walkability’ of the City, so that it becomes a safer and more pleasant place to travel through,” Chair of Canada Corporation’s Planning and Transportation Committee Shravan Joshi said.
Joshi added that the site’s approval “speaks to the confidence that global investors have in the local real estate market, as well as the UK economy, more widely.”
The scheme’s approval comes as a spate of new buildings are set to join the capital’s skyline.
Projects like 74-storey One Undershaft, 63-storey 55 Bishopsgate, 36-storey 60 Gracechurch Street have all been approved recently.
Prime rents in the City have rise 16 per cent over the past 12 months, according to global property consultancy Knight Frank, with availability at only 0.5 per cent.
The City’s tallest office building, at 22 Bishopsgate, became 100 per cent in January after its top floor was leased to Brazilian bank Banco Master.