Real Estate Investor Magazine South Africa June 2015 | Page 62

UK PROPERTY Canary Wharf From derelict docks to Europe’s financial heart BY MIKE SMUTS C anary Wharf has come a long way since the late 1980s, when a group of investors led by Canadian developer Olympia and York Developments Limited set out to transform an area of derelict shipping docks, three miles east of London’s traditional financial quarter, into a modern business hub. Today, Canary Wharf is home to the headquarters of numerous major banks, professional services firms and media organisations, employing about 105,000 people in 14,000,000 square feet (1,300,000 m2) of office and retail space. In January this year, Qatar’s state investment fund (QIA) and Canadian firm Brookfield Property Partners purchased the Canary Wharf estate for £2.6 billion. Building upon Canary Wharf ’s success, the new owners plan to push ahead with the substantial extension to the existing Canary Wharf to the East, backed by a £200 million government loan. The loan will help pay for the infrastructure required to “unlock the site to the east of the existing Canary Wharf estate, including the relocation and upgrading of utilities for the site,” according to a government statement. The project covers close to 4.9 million square feet, equivalent to about a third of the existing Canary Wharf footprint, in the area formerly known as Wood Wharf. Plans show park side town houses and high-rise buildings, including a cylindrical residential tower designed by Herzog and de Meuron, the Swiss architects behind the extension to the Tate Modern art gallery and the Beijing ‘Bird’s Nest’ Olympic stadium. It will also include new substantial green parks and dockside walks, a library, a large general practice surgery, a school for 420 children, a community sports hall and community space. 60 JUNE 2015 SA Real Estate Investor Planning has been granted for 2.2m square feet of office space within 30 new buildings, specifically aimed at technology focused start-ups. Canary Wharf is looking to diversify away from only having one business sector and is looking to attract technology, media and telecommunications business to Wood Wharf by creating Europe’s largest Financial Technologies (FinTech) centre. “Plans show park side town houses and high-rise buildings, including a cylindrical residential tower.” This expansion have already attracted over 150 Small and Medium Enterprises’ (SME’s) and will see an increase of jobs from 105, 000 currently to in excess of 200, 000 within the next decade. The new Canary Wharf Crossrail station opened it’s top two floors last month, showcasing its wide range of lifestyle and retail shops, bars and restaurants and a roof top garden with an arts amphitheatre. The actual Crossrail line is due for completion early in 2018 and when operational will offer a direct link to Heathrow airport and is set to attract more new business to Canary Wharf. The Wood Wharf expansion and infrastructure upgrades signify an important evolution in the development of Canary Wharf and this thriving business, shopping and cultural district will no doubt become one of the most coveted addresses in London. RESOURCES Smuts & Taylor Ltd www.reimag.co.za