Redevelopment plans of a site at the Royal Dutch Shell Center on the southern banks of River Thames have been given the green light by the local council. Canary Wharf Group, a popular construction firm and Qatari Diar, a sovereign wealth fund of Qatar, will be developing the site in a joint venture.
"We are delighted that Lambeth Council has approved these plans for us to work on such an important and historical site. We will continue to work with the London Borough of Lambeth and the local community as we move to the next phase of planning and development to ensure that all involved in the area get the best possible opportunities from this new development," Sir George Iacobescu, chairman and chief executive of Canary Wharf Group, said in a statement.
Plans of converting the Shell Center site into a mixed used space were first revealed some time back in December 2012. It was then decided that the site would comprise of several office, retail and residential buildings.
Final plans of the development include building eight new structures that will take up a total of 820,000 square feet, ranging from five to 37 floors, reports Bloomberg.
The 27-floor Shell Center tower will be the heart of the 1.45 meter square feet development, which has been titled Braeburn Estates. All the new buildings will be built around the Shell Tower, including a structure that will have trading floors for Shell. The new development will also have around 877 new homes.
According to the master-plan of the development, the buildings will be divided into:
Building 1 - office use, Squire and Partners; Building 2 - office use, Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates (KPF); Building 3 - residential use, Patel Taylor; Building 4A & 4B - residential use, Squire and Partners; Building 5 - residential use, Stanton Williams; Building 6 & 7 - residential use, GRID Architecture.
While Shell will retain freehold of its tower site, Qatari Diar and Canary Wharf will have a 999-year lease on the lot, reports BBC News.
"Our development will be a unique place to live and work in the centre of London, providing locals and visitors alike with much needed public space, entertainment and culture," Khaled Al Sayyed, CEO of Qatari Diar Group, said in the statement.
Check out the renderings of the development, here.
The Braeburn Development will be one of the most important developments of London. The project will take around six years to complete and will employ more than 700 construction workers.
Meanwhile, London is gaining popularity among foreign investors, especially in its commercial real estate sector. According to Bloomberg, foreign investment in London went up by 48 percent in 2012, while the rest of the U.K. recorded an 18 percent drop.
The commercial sector is flourishing in London and the new development will only add to the luster of the resurging market.
