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

Camden

PW reports that Derwent London has sold the freehold interest in 132-142 Hampstead Road in London to the Secretary of State for Transport for £130m. The 219,700 sq ft property is let to University College London at an annual rent of £1.7m, but will eventually be demolished to make way for HS2.  Derwent London acquired the property in 2007 and subsequently secured planning permission for its original White Collar Factory scheme – a 233,000 sq ft office and 38 residential unit development.

City of London

PW reports that British Land and Oxford Properties are close to agreeing a deal to sell the Cheesegrater building for £1bn.  CC Land, an investment vehicle of property magnate Cheung Chung Kiu, has placed the City of London skyscraper under offer.  British Land had instructed Eastdil Secured and Cushman & Wakefield late last year to sell its 50% stake in the Leadenhall Building for around £500m. However, the bidding process saw a trio of Asian investors bid to buy out Oxford’s remaining 50% stake too.  CC Land beat rival bidders Temasek and sovereign wealth giant Korea Investment Corporation. The deal will be the largest single asset trade in the UK since December 2014 when QIA bought the HSBC Tower in Canary Wharf for £1.175bn.  The building is fully let to a range of tenants and includes the record City rent with independent shipping broker Affinity at around £90/sq ft.

PW reports that Mitsui Fudosan UK and development partner Stanhope have made the final retail letting at their City of London scheme Angel Court, which officially completed this week. Tandoori-style barbecue restaurant, temper, has signed for a 5,000 sq ft unit on a 20-year lease at the 300,000 sq ft building.  Temper will join the Peruvian restaurant Coya, The Natural Kitchen, and coffee, food and wine company Notes. The 24-storey building, designed by Fletcher Priest Architects, will account for around 20% of the grade A office space that will be delivered in the City over the course of 2017, with a range of floorplates of up to 27,000 sq ft.

PW reports that Beltane Asset Management and Angelo Gordon have appointed constructors after receiving the green light to progress with extending the floor space of their office development at 55 Gresham Street in London. Their City office development will now provide 121,000 sq ft of grade A office accommodation delivered to the market in Q2 2018. It will provide floors plates of 13,000 sq ft over nine floors, including a glass pavilion and a 3,500 sq ft rooftop terrace.  The leasing agents are Cushman & Wakefield and JLL.

PW reports that Standard Life Investments has let the second floor of 100 Cheapside to law firm Goodwin Procter on a 15-year lease, bringing the building to 100% occupation. The law firm already occupies the top three floors of the building, and has agreed to take the 11,247 sq ft floor for an undisclosed price. Other occupiers in the building include Concentra Analytics, Nespresso, Massimo Dutti, Ashtead Group and Elixirr Partners. CBRE advised Standard Life Investments; Knight Frank acted for Goodwin Procter.

PW reports that Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer has signed a pre-let agreement to locate its new London office at Brookfield Property Partners’ 100 Bishopsgate, the developer has confirmed. Freshfields, one of the world’s ‘global elite’ law firms, will occupy 255,000 sq ft across floors 20 to 32 on a 20 year lease. The firm has an option to expand or contract the size of its office space at the 37-storey tower prior to occupancy.

PW reports that AXA Investment Managers – Real Assets has put 20 Gresham Street, a prime freehold City of London trophy office building, on the market for £315m.  It has instructed Cushman & Wakefield to sell the building at a yield of 4%.  The 240,000 sq ft building is predominantly let to ICBC Standard Bank and produces an annual rent of £12.8m.

EG reports that six city law firms have put office requirements totaling more than 630,000 sq ft under review as the sector battles with business uncertainty.  The largest is Berwin Leighton Paisner, which has instructed Cushman & Wakefield to advise on the future of its London HQ following the 2019 experiry of its 162,000 sq ft lease at Adelaide House, EC4.  Baker McKenzie has also launched a workspace review understood to be led by CBRE to consider its futureof its 160,000 sq ft offices at 100 New Bridge Street, EC4.

City of Westminster

PW reports that offers of £70m are sought for Grosvenor Victoria Casino.  Aprirose has appointed Knight Frank and Savills to market the Grosvenor Victoria Casino for an asking price of around £70m. The 71,138 sq ft property is let to Rank Group until 2026 and is the operator’s flagship casino among 55 sites around the UK. Located on Edgware Road, the casino is in a prime West End location and attracts around 1,400 customers per day.  The casino is also home to a well-known poker room with capacity for 250 players across 35 tables.

PW reports that Workspace Group has agreed a deal to acquire 13-17 Fitzroy Street, in London’s West End, for £98.5m.  It has signed an option agreement for the right to acquire the freehold of the 92,700 sq ft building, and is expected to exercise the option on 25 March 2017.   The building is being acquired at a capital value of £1,063/sq ft and a net initial yield of 4.6%. The transaction will be funded from existing facilities. Arup, the owner and occupier of the Fitzrovia office, will sign a lease until September 2022 at an annual rent of £4.9m, which equates to £53/sq ft, rising to £6m (£65/sq ft) in March 2021.

PW reports that Shaftesbury has announced five new restaurants in London’s Chinatown, letting a total of 14,000 sq ft of space. Taiwanese restaurant and bar XU, from the creators of BAO in Soho and Fitzrovia, will open its first store on 30 Rupert Street, securing a 2,479 sq ft unit. It is joined by fast food chain Leon, which has taken 1,250 sq ft on Shaftesbury Avenue, and Mediterranean restaurant Hovarda, which will take 5,670 sq ft on Rupert Street in the summer. Completing the deals are a debut for Bubblewrap, a 515 sq ft café Honk Kong-style waffle counter at 24 Wardour Street, and Hot Pot, a 4,240 sq ft Thai restaurant on the same street. Shaftesbury did not disclose any rents paid.

EG reports that Grosvenor Estate are set to bring their 20 year vision to the Heart of Mayfair by reinvigorating Grosvenor’s Square’s offering.  Grosvenor Estate hope to improve the public realm; create more green spaces; develop business districts with diverse occupiers and reduce pollution.

ES reports that New Art Deco style homes in St Johns Wood have been revealed. The development is called the Compton and has 49 apartments.  The low rise, lateral living is the hallmark of its coveted inner suburb, a discreet, leafy and unlighted enclave with a giant back garden called Regent’s Park and Lord’s Cricket Ground.

ES reports that a lateral apartment on the seventh floor of the world’s most expensive apartment block in Knightsbridge has been listed for sale for £55 million this week.  In addition a buyer would have to pay £6.5 million stamp duty and £14,000 in service charge.

Hackney

PW reports that entertainment group Time Out’s plans for a 19,250 sq ft market in Shoreditch have been turned down by Tower Hamlets council. The group submitted plans for the market, containing restaurants, bars, shops, an art gallery, and a cookery school, in October. Since then, Tower Hamlets has received more than 70 written objections to the plans to redevelop a former stables site on Commercial Street, and the council’s licensing subcommittee have now voted unanimously against them. Time Out has vowed to appeal the decision.  A spokeswoman said: “We are disappointed that our licence application was rejected at the first hearing with the Tower Hamlets licensing subcommittee. Since our initial application, we have worked diligently to listen to the local community and to take their suggestions onboard in order to agree on a way forward together.”

Hammersmith and Fulham

PW reports that UBS Asset Management has bought a 184-bedroom student accommodation development in Fulham, west London, from Imperial College London for £31.5m. Following the purchase of the 58,000 sq ft Orient House, by the UBS Triton Property Fund, UBS partner Universal Student Living will manage the building and directly let rooms to students across London. Imperial College had operated the building as part of its Grad Pad portfolio, which primarily lets to postgraduate students studying at the university. The deal brings UBS Triton’s student portfolio to 800 beds and represents its first investment in existing stock, following three development funding deals in Newcastle, Durham, and Belfast. UBS Triton was advised by Tudor Toone and Lawson & Partners.

Wandsworth

PW reports that Wandsworth Council has named Taylor Wimpey as preferred bidder on a £1bn regeneration scheme in Battersea. The developer has been chosen as a joint venture partner for a 2,000 home redevelopment of the Winstanley and York Road estates. Taylor Wimpey proposed a scheme comprising 970 homes for private sale alongside 530 social rented properties, 100 for affordable rent, 100 for shared ownership, and 300 private rented homes. Retail, commercial and leisure space is also planned. Other shortlisted bidders included Balfour Beatty Infrastructure Investments & First Base, Berkeley Group, C&C Properties UK & Pinnacle Group, and Lend Lease Europe Holdings, which has been named reserve bidder. Wandsworth Council was advised by GVA.