Shorea Capital and Native Land have unveiled plans for the redevelopment of 188 City Road close to Old Street tube station in London.
The office building was originally built as the head office for Lipton Tea Company and the joint venture partners intend to retain or restore 70% of the building’s existing structure.
Designed by a team led by Stiff + Trevillion Architects, the redeveloped office will be called SIRA and the building’s net floor area will be increased to 42,000 sq ft through the addition of sensitively-designed fourth and fifth floors, a single-storey mansard floor and a rooftop pavilion to create a private terrace for occupiers.
Shorea Capital and Native Land are targeting a BREEAM Excellent rating for the all-electric scheme, which was acquired by Shorea Capital in 2021 and is part of the fund’s brown-to-green value-add strategy. The redevelopment is expected to complete in Q4 2025.
Eng Yaw Ong, managing director of Shorea Capital, said: “SIRA is a key addition to our portfolio of high-quality commercial properties. We are proud to be working with Native Land to deliver a future-proof ESG-compliant office building strategically positioned to cater to the growing demand for best-in-class workspace.”
Alasdair Nicholls, chief executive of Native Land, added: “We are committed to delivering sustainable places and adding value through cutting-edge practices. At 188 City Road, we are proud to be working with Shorea, to be retaining the character and embodied carbon of the existing building, while bringing it up to the highest modern workspace standards. With the recent upgrades to the Old Street roundabout and station, this prime location is now even more exciting and accessible.”
The project team comprises contractor 8Build, structural engineer Heyne Tillett Steel and building services engineer NDY. Savills and Ellis Brown have been appointed as joint letting agents.
