Land Securities has let the whole of its 442,000 sq ft Empress State Building at Earl’s Court, in the biggest ever letting in west London.
The Met has taken the 30-storey building on a 15-year lease, in order to consolidate staff from other older buildings across Central London. It also needs additional space for the support staff that will be needed for the expansion of the force to 35,000.
LandSec has recently refurbished the entire building, which was one of the first two in it Landflex portfolio. The Landflex contract will allow the Met to occupy the building in phases, and will provide complete price certainty over the terms of the lease.
LandSec will continue to maintain the property, and sublet sections of the building not currently occupied by the Met. The first three floors of the building have already been sublet to Transport for London, which will move into the property in September.
As part of the deal, the Met has agreed to surrender its lease on Wellington House, Victoria, also owned by LandSec.
Landflex Director, Matthew Punshon, commented: “The agreement with the Metropolitan Police Authority truly demonstrates the different and innovative solutions that Land Securities can provide through Landflex. The Group has had a long relationship with the Metropolitan Police and we are extremely pleased that, following our successful Landflex letting to them at Soho Square, we have been able to tailor further our products and services to provide a solution which fully meets their future operational objectives.”
Alan Croney, the Met’s Director of Property Services, added: “We have been seeking to update and improve the accommodation occupied by the MPS as much of the estate is old, under-funded and poorly positioned. The move to modern accommodation is part of our strategy to reinvest, refresh and recycle the estate in innovative ways.'
Cushman & Wakefield Healey & Baker and Jones Lang LaSalle acted for LandSec. Ernst & Young represented the Met.
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Source: Freeman / PR Wire
