New ‘super luxury’ hotel for the City

 

A new “super luxury” hotel and residences in the Square Mile will join a wave of upmarket hotels and homes being built in the capital after the City of London granted planning permission for the conversion of the former Port of London Authority headquarters at 10 Trinity Square. The grade II* listed building next to the Tower of London will be redeveloped into a 120-bedroom hotel with 41 serviced apartments as well as a private members’ club, spa, two bars and a restaurant. Speculation Timing is crucial for skyscraper success Ronson reveals ambitions for City luxury Prime horizon IN UK OECD criticises settlement of bribery cases Stansted passengers face Easter disruption Spectrum sale planned to avert data crunch Ruling paves way for asbestos insurance claims The development will be the latest branded residence, where luxury hotels are linked with high-end residential apartments, earmarked for London, including Shangri-La at the Shard in London Bridge, which is nearing completion. Heron Plaza, owned by Gerald Ronson’s development group, is under way on Bishopsgate and will consist of a Four Seasons hotel and 120 branded residences. It is due for completion in 2015. The 415,000 sq ft development at 10 Trinity Square, where work will begin in the third quarter and is due for completion in 2014, was bought by Singapore-based KOP Properties, the real estate group, and Reignwood Group in 2010. Woods Bagot is the architect. 10 Trinity Square was originally designed by Sir Edwin Cooper in 1922 as the headquarters of the Port of London Authority and is famous for hosting the inaugural meeting of the United Nations General Assembly in 1946. It was most recently the UK headquarters of Willis Insurance. The developers hope to turn 10 Trinity Square into a “destination address”. Leny Suparman, chief executive of KOP Properties, said: “Our vision is for 10 Trinity Square to become a new global destination on the edge of the City of London, with a very British DNA and a timeless, classic appeal.” Prices for the private apartments start at £2,500 per sq ft and they will be marketed in the next month. Charles Leigh, senior director of CBRE, the sales agent, said private apartments serviced by luxury hotel brands had grown in popularity. “People like the idea of having their own personal hotel room that hasn’t been slept in by someone else the night before,” he said. The apartments will measure between 1,300 sq ft and 9,000 sq ft and consist of a mixture of two to four bedroom units and penthouses on the third to seventh floors of the building.