Southbank Tower

(Redirected from King's Reach Tower)

Southbank Tower (formerly South Bank Tower, and the King's Reach Tower until 2013[4]) is a high-rise building in Stamford Street, Southwark, London. It was originally a thirty-storey structure 111 metres (364 ft) high and was completed in 1972,[5] designed by the architect Richard Seifert and built by John Laing. In recent years, the tower has undergone extensive redevelopment and a height increase.

Southbank Tower
One Blackfriars, The Shard, and South Bank Tower from Waterloo Bridge, January 2019
Map
Former namesKing's Reach Tower, South Bank Tower
General information
StatusCompleted
TypeMixed use
LocationLondon, SE1
United Kingdom
Completed2015 (original tower constructed 1972)
Height
Roof151 metres (495 ft)[1] (original tower 111 metres (364 ft))
Technical details
Floor count41 (original tower: 31)
Floor area191 apartments, 370,000 sq.ft Office, 72,000 sq.ft retail
Design and construction
Architect(s)Kohn Pedersen Fox[2]
DeveloperCIT
Main contractorMace[3]
Website
http://www.southbanktower.com

The tower is similar in design to Tower 42, which was designed by the same architect.

Previous tenants

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The tower was the headquarters of IPC Media, one of the biggest publishing companies in Europe. In the late 1970s, the tower became part of the mythos surrounding the British comic 2000 AD, published by IPC, and the building was depicted as a disguised spaceship, and home to the 'Nerve Centre' of its alien editor, Tharg. IPC moved to the Blue Fin Building in nearby Bankside in 2007.

Redevelopment

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In February 2005 the then owners Capital & Counties Properties[6] applied for planning permission with a design by Make Architects to remodel the tower by extending it to 34 floors along with replacement buildings for the T-shaped building at its base.[7] Permission was granted in July 2005.[8] However no redevelopment took place.

Capital and Counties sold the property to Simon Halabi's Buckingham Securities in 2006 for a reported £80m.[5]

As part of their joint venture, CIT and Jadwa Investment purchased the property for £60m in 2010.[9] In July 2011 CIT was awarded planning permission to convert the building to residential use along with additional mixed uses.[10] The redevelopment of the building commenced in January 2013. Six new floors were originally planned to be added to the tower, increasing its height to around 128.4 metres (421 ft). The new tower was to house 173 apartments, with retail units to be built around the base and the existing podium building increased in height and transformed into new office space.

In mid 2013, CIT requested permission to increase the tower's height by a further 5 floors (bringing the total to 11) which would bring the tower to 155 metres (509 ft). 18 additional apartments would be made available with this increase. The plans were approved by Southwark councillors on 16 July 2013.[11]

In September 2012 the joint venture secured £250m of funding from a consortium of Middle Eastern financial institutions.[12]

In 2015 the building was purchased by Hermes Central London Limited Partnership who commissioned TPBennett llp to carry out a CAT A fit out design for all of the commercial space, to redesign the retail frontages not already completed and to remodel the entrance to the central street and both of the office entrances. These works also incorporated a new 9 storey feature staircase suspended from the side of the tower building. The additional works were completed in 2017.

See also

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References

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Southbank Tower and One Blackfriars viewed from The Shard
  1. ^ "The colonel's recipe for success – two Seifert towers being brought back to life". DesignCurial. 13 July 2015. Retrieved 18 September 2021.
  2. ^ Merlin Fulcher (9 September 2010). "Make loses King's Reach Tower job to KPF". Architects' Journal. Retrieved 18 October 2013.
  3. ^ Allister Hayman (20 November 2012). "Mace confirmed for £129m King's Reach tower". Building. Retrieved 18 October 2013.
  4. ^ "King's Reach Tower renamed South Bank Tower". London SE1. 3 March 2013. Retrieved 18 October 2013.
  5. ^ a b Lydia Stockdale (1 June 2007). "The Bankside effect". Building.co.uk. Retrieved 19 October 2013.
  6. ^ "King's Reach Regeneration gets the green light". Capital & Counties Properties. 7 July 2005. Archived from the original on 19 October 2013. Retrieved 19 October 2013.
  7. ^ "Southwark Planning Applications". Southwark Council. 05-AP-0227. Archived from the original on 22 October 2013. Retrieved 19 October 2013.
  8. ^ "King's Reach Tower extension gets the green light". London SE1. 7 July 2005. Retrieved 19 October 2013.
  9. ^ Robin Wigglesworth (15 June 2010). "Jadwa to invest £500m in UK". Financial Times. Archived from the original on 10 December 2022. Retrieved 30 July 2014.
  10. ^ "Council approves conversion of King's Reach Tower to luxury flats". London SE1. 20 July 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2013.
  11. ^ Peter Bill (18 July 2013). "King's Reach for the sky as 11 floors added". London Evening Standard. Retrieved 18 October 2013.
  12. ^ "CIT secures funding for Kings Reach Tower redevelopment". Out-law.com. Retrieved 18 October 2013.
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51°30′26.7″N 00°6′27.5″W / 51.507417°N 0.107639°W / 51.507417; -0.107639