The German international capital investment company, DIFA Deutsche Immobilien Fonds AG, yesterday submitted a planning application to the Corporation of London for 'The Bishopsgate Tower' - a major new development on its landholdings in the City of London at Bishopsgate and Crosby Square. 'The Bishopsgate Tower' has been designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox, the internationally renowned architects.
The proposed building is 307 meters high and comprises 88,000 m² of offices, retail and public space, which, together with sustainable energy systems, form a symbiotic part of the refined architectural design. 'The Bishopsgate Tower' has the potential to become one of the most significant new buildings in the City with a design that will strengthen the overall character and identity of the emerging cluster of tall buildings in this location.The proposal would also make a substantial contribution to the public realm, opening up the ground level area to pedestrians and providing an important new public amenity that will benefit the immediate area and the wider environment. Inside 'The Bishopsgate Tower', restaurant facilities planned for the sky lobby on the 43rd floor will be higher than any existing public space in London.
The development would occupy adjacent plots at Crosby Court, 22-24 Bishopsgate and Crosby Square, some of which have been in DIFA's ownership since 1997.
Speaking about the application, Frank Billand, DIFA Board Member said: "We have had property interests in London for 13 years but this proposed development offers a special and very significant opportunity for our fund owners. It would be a chance to create a landmark building right in the heart of the City of London and to enhance the asset value of our UK portfolio. It will significantly improve the current environment and provide the quality of space which is important for international global occupiers. The City is gaining a reputation for promoting world-class architecture and we are convinced that KPF's design will also be an aesthetically important contribution to the cluster of tall buildings in this part of the square mile."
Architects, KPF, have designed some of the most prominent buildings in London and other parts of the world. In the City their work includes the Heron Tower, Thames Court, and AIG Europe Headquarters.
Explaining the design, Lee Polisano, President of KPF, said: "This building is a specific response to the site's unique location within the City of London. In its form, it could not exist in any other place. Our design unites and balances the new and emerging tall buildings within the City by completing the apex to the cluster. Equally important to the building's contribution to London's skyline is its contribution to our public realm. The design provides magnificent new public spaces at a sky lobby and at ground level and also links a number of important urban spaces along Bishopsgate and St. Mary Axe."
DIFA hopes that the Corporation of London will be in a position to determine the planning application later this year.
Source: DIFA
