Land Securities to develop €304m speculative project in City of London

Land Securities is investing £260 mln (€304 mln) in the speculative development of a mixed-use scheme in the City of London.

The site at 1 & 2 New Ludgate is close to St Paul’s Cathedral and comprises two distinct buildings linked by a new public square. The 35,000 m2 scheme will offer around 32,000 m2 of office accommodation with the remainder devoted to retail and restaurant facilities.

Land Securities has appointed Skanska Construction as main contractor for the scheme. Construction will start on site in August with completion scheduled for April 2015.

Land Securities said its decision to go ahead with 1 & 2 New Ludgate demonstrates its confidence in the London office market and follows the announcement in May that it is committing to the next phase of its £2.2 bn redevelopment of Victoria in London’s West End.

Colette O’Shea, head of development for London at the UK REIT, said: ‘Our decision to commence the speculative development of 1 & 2 New Ludgate reflects our confidence both in the City office market, where we believe supply of new space will be constrained in 2015, and in the quality of the attractive and highly efficient office space we are creating.’

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