South African billionaire Nathan ‘Natie’ Kirsh has told EG he does not plan to sell City of London skyscraper Tower 42, after unveiling a £50m retail and office redevelopment at its EC2 site.
The property tycoon said its refurbishment and expansion formed part of a long-term asset management plan, devised when he completed the deal to buy the EC2 estate for £282.5m in 2011.
“You would have to be nuts to sell prime freehold real estate in the heart of the City of London,” said Kirsh.
He added: “There are still huge amounts of capital chasing London assets. There will always be short-term blips like Brexit, but it’s impossible to replace London as a world class city.”
The investor pointed to Deutsche Bank’s pre-let agreement for a new headquarters at Landsec’s 21 Moorfields, EC2, in August last year as an example of continued momentum in the market.
The Tower 42 Estate has invested £50m in a retail quarter designed around a new walkway called The Avenue, which connects Old Broad Street to Bishopsgate.
The revamp comprises 77,000 sq ft of new retail and office space across the estate, sold at up to £70 per sq ft on short-term leases of up to three years.
Philip Lewis of Kirsh Group said the development will strengthen Liverpool Street’s positioning as “the epicentre of London’s business community”, accompanied by the launch of the new Elizabeth line railway in 2019.
“When we first took over the estate, the City was dominated by American law firms and banks. In Tower 42 we now have tech companies, medical firms and overseas banks. We’re home to domestic companies as well as businesses from the US, Korea and Scandinavia,” said Lewis.
“The market wants small suites and Tower 42 is able to offer short-term flexible leases to compete with the serviced office sector.”
The redevelopment, which also included a refurbished foyer and new £10m lift system at the skyscraper, was designed by architects Stiff + Trevillion. The site’s occupier count stood at around 4,300.
The Tower 42 Estate spans 500,000 sq ft across six buildings. The skyscraper itself measures 320,000 sq ft across 42 upper levels.
Another property, nearby 15 Bishopsgate, consists of 56,000 sq ft. It was pre-let to WeWork last year.
Its other buildings are neighbouring 20 Old Broad Street, 30 Old Broad Street, Bishopsgate venue Gibson Hall and 31 Old Broad Street.
The estate’s tenants include a Marks & Spencer food hall, restaurant chain Paul, eatery Vital Ingredient, salon operator Ted’s Grooming, gastropub Broadleaf and florist Windsor Flowers.
