Land Securities has submitted detailed plans to the City of London for a new addition to Londons skyline incorporating designs for a new tower at 20 Fenchurch Street, EC3 in the City of London. The proposed 45-story building is designed by Rafael Viñoly, one of the worlds most innovative and acclaimed architects.
The plans outline Land Securities proposal to replace an existing tower with a visually striking 192m (630ft) tower incorporating approximately 850,000 sq ft of premier office accommodation and 12,000 sq ft of retail space. The design deliberately draws inspiration from its surrounding environment and complements the neighbouring buildings.
The 20 Fenchurch Street design inverts the traditional deployment of the building volume, creating large floorplates higher in the building. This innovative approach creates the opportunity to provide a large and unique space for public functions in the form of a Skyroom at the 40th level. This will feature a four-story high window to the south, a 360-degree panorama of London and an outside roof terrace with dramatic views across the City and River Thames.
Viñolys design frees up space at the bottom of the building for the creation of a significant new area of public realm; a landscaped public park to the south of the main building. There will also be a building housing a new restaurant and bar which will open up onto this 10,000 square feet urban space.
Mike Hussey, Managing Director of Land Securities, London Portfolio, commented:
20 Fenchurch Street is a rare opportunity to replace a dated building with a scheme of exceptional quality designed by a world class architect. The design will enhance the skyline, local streetscape and the emerging cluster of tall buildings in the City.
The building exploits the potential of the site with a mix of uses, leading edge design and a significant improvement to the public realm which responds to the local context and heritage considerations. It will also aim to achieve new benchmarks in environmental performance and energy consumption.
Rafael Viñoly, said:
The current extraordinary phase of the Citys development demands a special kind of design response, one that is both respectful of its historic character and surroundings but also makes a unique architectural statement. In a limited site like 20 Fenchurch Street, the idea of inverting the traditional shape of a high rise building will create a Skyroom that is not just an observatory but a place where public functions can occur.
The building appears to lean toward the river as if emerging from the outcrop of the site topography, focusing its views to the Thames. The slight curves of the facades compliment the curvature of the River and follow the geometry of the medieval streets that bound the site.
Source: Land Securities
