Tower 42 Owners Plan New Extensions
Published on 29-01-2008 by Skyscrapernews.com
Tower 42 could be set for a make-over if new plans by joint owners, Hermes and Black Rock are realised.
Faced with the growing competition as one of the only skyscrapers in the City of London from a whole host of new towers such as 122 Leadenhall and the Bishopsgate Tower that offer much more by the way of square metres.
Their solution to responding to these rival developments is to radically rebuild the glass podium that connects the tower to Old Broad Street by creating a glass honeycomb of offices in it�s place that will rise up to eleven floors tall designed by Studio Egret West.
The existing pin-striped glass and stainless stel main structure of the skyscraper will remain intact but the new development will total about 25,000 square metres, a net increase of 11,000 on what is presently there.
Many improvements are also planned to the current public realm at the base of the tower which is dominated by a labyrinth of raised passages making existing pedestrian access through the site a confusing experience. These will be removed with new links through the site built in their place.
Development of the site is complicated by some of the lower-rise historic Gibson Banking Hall next to the skyscraper that dictated the originally cantilevered nature of the Natwest Tower when it was originally built in the 1970s.
There is also the issue of existing tenancies such as the Royal Bank of Scotland which the developers hope can be persuaded to surrender its lease before the end of the year so that work can begin. 20 and 30 Old Broad Street are also up for development as part of the scheme meaning it will have to be phased in over ten years.
Hermes and Black Rock are aiming for beginning consultations with the planning department at the City of London on how to proceed this summer.
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