Camden

EG reports that Aviva is looking to secure offers in the region of £37.5 million for the long leasehold interest in 8 Bloomsbury Street, WC1, reflecting a net initial yield of 5.87%. Savills is marketing the 33,448 sqft asset. Aviva launched a refurbishment in 2017, with designs spearheaded by Buckley Gray Yeoman, and the building holds an EPC rating of B and a BREEAM Very Good rating.

City of London

EG reports that Aviva Investors have agreed a prelet with law firm Dentons at its redevelopment of One Liverpool Street, EC2. Dentons will take 67,000 sqft in the 176,000 sqft building on an initial term of 15 years. It plans to move into the 10-storey scheme in mid-2026. The building is targeting  a BREAAM outstanding rating and is planned to meet Carbon Risk Real Estate Monitor’s decarbonisation pathway requirements.

MyLondon reports that the City of London has scrapped plans to reintroduce the Beech Street Zero Emission Scheme during a meeting  this week. Beech Street became the UK’s first “zero emissions street” in March 2020 when the City banned all petrol and diesel vehicles from using it for am 18-month period.

City of Westminster

Property Week reports that Premium luggage brand Samsonite has signed a five-year lease for a 4,687 sq ft unit in Oxford Street. The firm has agreed a five-year lease at an undisclosed cost for the four-floor unit, with the ground and first floors to be utilised as retail space. The store will open in the third quarter of this year.

City AM reports that a new 45,000 sq ft site flexible work space will open in the heart of the West End in a signal that London’s hybrid work trend is showing no signs of cooling. Runway East, (RWE) already has five spaces across London, including sites in Borough Market and Shoreditch – and will open a new one thanks in part to the capital most popular and new route. Its latest site will be opened in Holborn at 24-28 Bloomsbury Way, signing a joint venture partnership agreement with the current leaseholder communications giant WPP and landlord Abrdn.

BE News reports that developer Hines has acquired the 103,000 soft Film House in London’d West End on behalf go Hines European Value Fund 3 (HEVF 3) for an undisclosed price.

EG reports that Soho institution Bar Italia is among 124 lots set to go under the hammer in Allsop’s July auction. The cafe on Frith Street W1, which has an alcohol licence and is allowed to trade until 5am 7 days a week, is listed with a guide price of £2 million plus for the 6 July online sale. It is let at 175,000 p/a.

EG Radius reports that approval has been granted for an extensive refurbishment of 36-44 Gillingham Street in Victoria. Etwod Fund Management and development manager Landid have been given the go-ahead for the plans, which will see the 44,000 sqft buildings transformed to provide 100,000 sqft of sustainable office space.

Hackney

Hackney Council has launched a public consultation to shape the council’s future Housing Services priorities.The eight week survey is designed to help the Council shape the future delivery of its housing services to the around 23,000 households living in its homes.

Kensington & Chelsea

Construction Enquirer reports that Grenfell Tower contractor Rydon has revealed a provision of £26.7 million to cover the cost of its part in the civil claim settlement earlier this year. The provision will go towards more than 900 survivors and bereaved family members of the tragedy.The provision is also understood to include the potential outcome of ongoing talks with individuals not included in the BSR Cohort 1 group civil case settlement.Rydon said its settlement is being covered by its insurers.

Lambeth

EG reports that Australian developer Third.i has bought CLS Holdings’ Westminster Tower on London’s South Bank for more than £40 million. The tower has existing planning consent for conversion to residential.

Southwark

Property Week reports that British Land and AustralianSuper have welcomed Chemastery, a start-up focused on increasing the efficiency of chemical research and manufacturing, as the first pre-let at Paper Yard in Canada Water.Chemastery will take circa 2,100 sq ft of office and lab space at Paper Yard, a new scheme comprising 33,000 sq ft of modular lab space.

Property Week reports that King’s College London has partnered with life sciences real estate and venture building firm Pioneer Group to develop 95,000 sq ft of incubator facilities on London’s South Bank.

The Evening Standard reports that fifteen disused railway arches in Peckham are to be transformed in a newly-announced £3m project. The arches between Brayards Road and Consort Road, formerly the home of the Meridian Bronze Foundry, will be named Bronze Yard and is set to open to businesses in autumn.

Tower Hamlets

Construction Enquirer reports that McLaren Construction is moving its headquarters from its historic home in Brentwood to a new national headquarters in Canary Wharf. The move will see 240 staff from Essex and McLaren’s City of London office join forces in their new Canary Wharf base at Churchill Place in September. A further 700 site-based, Midlands & North and UAE colleagues will use the space periodically to share expertise.

General

Property Week reports that the government has launched a consultation on how planning reform can address the needs of the freight and logistics sector. The Department for Transport (DfT) and Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) are calling on the industry to consult on planning reform, one of five areas of potential change proposed for the sector in the government’s Future of Freight – a long term plan published last year.

The Times reports that a construction boom is pushing vacant office space to near record highs. There are likely to be more offices lying empty in Britain next year than ever recorded before as reduced demand from businesses combines with an increase in new blocks being completed. About 105 million sq ft of office space is vacant nationwide, according to the latest figures from CoStar, a property analytics provider. That is an increase of 68 per cent on the 62.5 million sq ft in the month before the pandemic arrived in Britain and started a new era of working from home.

Property Week reports that Westminster City Council and the Westminster Property Association have announced the first signatories for its new sustainability charter, including Landsec, GPE, Shaftesbury Capital and several major agencies. Launched in November 2022, the Westminster Sustainable City Charter is a new framework for reducing operational carbon across the West End’s commercial buildings, which account for 60% of Westminster’s total carbon emissions. The first signatories collectively occupy and manage 15.5m sq ft of commercial space, with Derwent London, GPE, Whitbread, Grosvenor and the Portman Estate also signing up.