A weekly round up of the latest property and planning news from the central London boroughs

Camden 

PW reports that  OakNorth Bank has financed a £21m loan for the development of a new luxury hotel L’Oscar, in central London, in its largest deal to date.The hotel is situated at 2-6 Southampton Row in Holborn, in a Grade II* listed former Baptist Church headquarters, and is expected to open its doors in early 2018. The Jacques Garcia-designed building will comprise 40 bedrooms, as well as a bar, restaurant, café, and conference facilities and will be managed by Michael Voigt.

PW reports that The new office and retail building at One Bedford Avenue has achieved a Wired Certified Platinum rating for its best-in-class connectivity.The certified platinum rating is WiredScore’s highest rating, ranking the building’s technology infrastructure as among the best in the UK.The Avenue’s connectivity highlights include free WIFI in common areas, two ports of entry for communications and three service providers. The seven-storey building, which is owned by AshbyCapital and has been developed by Exemplar, provides 71,000 sq ft of office space and 14,000 sq ft of retail space. It was completed in March 2017 and is located just off the new Tottenham Court Road tube station. In January, Skyscanner pre-let 24,000 sq ft over the top three floors of the building.

City of London 

PW reports that CC Land has completed the £1.15bn purchase of the Leadenhall Building. The deal with British Land and Oxford Properties completed after the group obtained shareholder approval for the transaction at a special general meeting. British Land and Oxford Properties have owned the Leadenhall Building, also known as the Cheesegrater, in a 50/50 joint venture formed in 2010. British Land and Oxford Properties were advised by Cushman & Wakefield, Eastdil Secured, Mayer Brown and Herbert Smith Freehills.

PW reports that HB Reavis has secured a £127m loan for its flagship office building, 33 Central in London.HB Reavis acquired the site in late 2013 and started construction in mid-2014. In July 2016, the building was sold to Wells Fargo: the third largest bank in the US by asset size .Upon completion in summer 2017, 33 Central will provide 226,042 sq ft of grade A office space over nine floors and a rooftop garden offering panoramic views of London’s most famous landmarks including the Shard, St. Paul’s, the ‘Walkie Talkie’ office building and the River Thames. 

Hammersmith & Fulham 

PW reports that Gulf-based multi-family office Tilad has made its first UK acquisition by completing on a deal to buy One Queen Caroline Street in Hammersmith. The purchase of the 83,000 sq ft site, formerly Coca Cola’s UK headquarters, from a fund advised by Brockton Capital and Landid was revealed last month.  The deal marks the first UK acquisition for Tilad having invested heavily in Europe in recent years, including a €600m Nordic logistics portfolio. One Queen Caroline Street has recently undergone a £14m refurbishment under Brockton’s ownership, including the addition of an expansive urban roof garden and shared clubhouse on the sixth floor. In January, Landid and Brockton let 8,239 sq ft of space on the second floor to professional services firm BTS. Other current tenants include US television network A+E and data company Kambi.

Islington 

PW reports that Derwent London has let the top two floors totalling 28,500 sq ft of the tower at White Collar Factory to Box.com, the cloud content management company.Box.com has signed a 15-year lease with five-year rent reviews and a break in year 10 at an initial rent of £2.1m a year. This equates to £75/ sq ft, which is above last December’s ERV. The rent free period is equivalent to 18 months on a 10-year lease, rising to 23 months on a 15-year term. Following the letting, the tower at White Collar Factory in EC1 is now 92% let and the whole development, which recently completed, is 83% let.

Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea 

PW reports that Parisian childrenswear retailer Bonton has leased space in Notting Hill, West London for its first store in the UK.It has agreed a new 10-year lease on the store at 233-235 Westbourne Grove, which covers 1,440 sq ft, with landlord Brathew. The Bonton brand has stores in Paris, Bordeaux, Tokyo, Los Angeles and Seoul, as well as concessions in hundreds of multi-brand and department stores globally. Savills acted for Brathew on the deal while Harper Dennis Hobbs represented Bonton.

Southwark 

PW reports that an office building in the shadow of The Shard that has redevelopment potential for a 200,000 sq ft-plus scheme is to hit the market with a price tag of around £70m. The City of London Corporation has appointed JLL to advise on the sale of a 150-year long-leasehold interest in Colechurch House at 1 London Bridge Walk. It will go out to tender in June and is expected to attract the attention of several office developers including The Shard owners Sellar Property Group and the State of Qatar. Colechurch House is believed to have potential for an office scheme of between 200,000 sq ft and 250,000 sq ft. A buyer would have to secure planning permission for any redevelopment.

Westminster

PW reports that Paris-based fashion label Azzedine Alaïa will open its first London flagship store at 139 New Bond Street. The 6,000 sq ft, three-floor store is owned by Trophaeum Asset Management, which acquired it in December 2015, and was formerly home to the vintage jeweller SJ Phillips. Alaïa will be paying £1,500/ sq ft for the store.