A new development by Legal & General Property in association with the Mitsubishi Estate Company has recently seen the light. It is the first in the UK to be designed by architect Renzo Piano.
The building is situated in the St Giles area of London?s West End, between Covent Garden and Soho. It forms part of a multi-purpose development; the building itself includes 400,000 square feet office space and 56 private apartments, with 53 affordable homes and nine restaurants and caf? bars also featuring in the development.
The office building should be a valuable addition to the area at a time when the country is experiencing a limited supply to meet the current demand for prime office space.
Paul Finch, chairman of the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE), said that the building sets ?the standards by which office architecture should be judged?.
In terms of the UK government?s green requirements for future commercial buildings, the office property received an ?Excellent? rating. The new building was said to be paving the way towards a greener and more sustainable future for the built environment in both the residential and office sectors in the London property market.
Green measures that were implemented include biomass boilers to provide 80 per cent of the heating and hot water for both offices and apartments, with 60 per cent of rainwater and 100 per cent of cooling tower discharge to be applied towards irrigation and toilet flushing. A biodiversity element has been added with green roof terraces designed by Charles Funke.
