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The City of London has postponed a decision on the Square Mile’s new tallest building after a last-minute objection from the chairman of insurance market Lloyd’s of London.
City of London Corporation officials have recommended approval for the 73-storey skyscraper, called 1 Undershaft. But on Tuesday they faced questions from members of the authority’s planning committee about encroaching on St Helen’s Square, at the base of the tower.
Shravan Joshi, chairman of planning at the City of London corporation, said delaying the decision would give them time to “go back and negotiate with the applicant” about the fate of the public square.
The surprise decision came after a letter from Lloyd’s chairman Bruce Carnegie-Brown objecting to the project because it “would deprive the City of a truly important meeting space”.
The City of London Corporation is expected to vote on the landmark project, nearly 10 years after it was launched. first recommended. With a height similar to the Shard building, it will be one of the tallest buildings in Europe.
Lloyd recently agreed extended its lease at its Richard Rogers-designed headquarters across the road, the heart of the City’s specialist insurance market, where brokers and insurers still meet face-to-face to discuss policies.
1 Undershaft will be 50 storeys taller than the existing 23-storey 1960s tower on the site, formerly the headquarters of Aviva, whose design was influenced by modernist architect Mies van der Rohe. The Twentieth Century Society, which campaigns to preserve modern architecture, has argued that the building should not be demolished.
The site is located between four famous buildings: 22 Bishopsgate, currently the tallest building in the City; 122 Leadenhall Street, known as “The Cheesegrater”; the Gherkin; and Lloyd’s of LondonIt is Grade I listed and is known as an “inside out” building because its services, such as lifts and pipes, run down the outside.
The project was first approved by the City in 2016 as a simple tower design by architect Eric Parry. The project is being pushed by Aroland Holdings, in partnership with developer Stanhope. Aroland is backed by Singaporean tycoon Kuok Khoon Hong, chairman and CEO of food processing giant Wilmar International Limited, one of the world’s largest palm oil plantation owners.
Last year, Aroland applied for permission to significantly expand the tower, adding a floor to the height, as well as a terraced design that would allow for multiple terraces and increase the building’s floor space. The new design, also designed by Parry, includes an 11th-floor garden and a viewing gallery on the top that would be open to the public.
The architects said the new design would “highlight” the City’s cluster of skyscrapers and fit with plans to make London’s commercial centre more attractive to workers and visitors, with “high-quality outdoor spaces, public open spaces, improved sustainability and a range of creative and cultural activities”.
Responding to Tuesday’s decision, a spokesperson for the project said they “have listened carefully to comments regarding public space”.
“We will work closely with the City of London Corporation and our insurance industry partners to consider these through minor changes to the scheme,” they added.
However, the new proposal also takes away a large part of St Helen’s Square. Committee members said Carnegie-Brown’s intervention had highlighted opposition to the project within the insurance industry.
Carnegie-Brown said the 11th-floor garden would be “significantly less attractive than the space it replaces” because of security requirements. Similar rooftop gardens elsewhere in the city require visitors to go through airport-style security, sometimes causing queues.
Historic England is opposing the development, along with owners of neighbouring buildings, including Cheesegrater developer CC Land, and pension fund Universities Superannuation Scheme, who object to much of the new design and the loss of public space.
