HUB and Bridges Fund Management have acquired 45 Beech Street on the edge of the Barbican Estate for £30m.
The JV partners intend to refurbish and convert the existing office building into a residential scheme designed by Allford Hall Monaghan Morris (AHMM).
The building will be redeveloped by HUB’s wholly-owned subsidiary HubCap, which is focused on low carbon building reuse and emerging housing models.
The deal is the eleventh struck by the two companies and builds on the recent acquisition of another City of London site on Ludgate Hill.
Miles Keeley, principal at HubCap, said: “The Barbican has a proud history of pioneering city centre living and public realm, including the YMCA it housed from the 1970s. This scheme will deliver much-needed living spaces to the area on a site that is in need of an upgrade to meet changing building and energy performance standards. We look forward to developing the site in a way that’s authentic and respectful of this beloved place, alongside Bridges.
“HubCap launched in 2022, as part of a strategic vision to build a platform to deliver and operate emerging living models, with a focus on repurposing existing buildings, to bring vibrant and highly sustainable communities to urban areas that need reinvigorating – Beech Street is our largest deal to date.”
Simon Ringer, head of property funds at Bridges Fund Management, added: “London has a pressing need for more high-quality living space to house its growing population. Since 2014 we have partnered with HUB on a number of schemes that are on course to deliver more than 3,300 lower-cost and affordable homes with values of over £1bn.
“As part of our mission to help build a more sustainable and inclusive economy, we continue to explore new models with the potential to deliver high-quality housing while reducing carbon emissions. So we’re excited to be working again with HUB on this new Beech Street development. By investing our investors’ capital in needs-driven sectors like this, we are able to deliver our combined targets of strong financial returns for our investors alongside very positive social and environmental outcomes.”
DP9 is acting as planning consultant and Knight Frank advised on the deal. HK London and Michael Elliot acted for the seller.
