Land Securities has unveiled plans for more than 500,000 sq ft of offices to be built above the Moorgate Crossrail station in the City of London.
The REIT has launched a public consultation on the scheme at 21 Moorfields, EC2, the former home of investment bank Lazard.
LandSec’s proposed scheme includes two office buildings of 410,000 sq ft and 100,000 sq ft respectively. It also features a new City walkway connecting the Barbican Estate to Moorgate Crossrail station and a new public square.
The smaller of the two buildings will back on to the Barbican Estate, with the larger situated over the Crossrail station.
LandSec secured a three-year option over the site in late 2012. It was previously owned by Moises and Mendi Gertner’s Gibraltar-based Souzell vehicle but was in the hands of administrators at Ernst & Young after Lloyds Banking Group withdrew its support in April 2010.
LandSec is expected to submit a planning application for the site later this year once feedback from the two-day consultation had been digested.
The land is bounded by Moorfields, Fore Street Avenue, Moor Lane and New Union Street, and Moorgate Exchange.
Several previous schemes have been approved for the site, including a 422,735 sq ft scheme proposed by Hammerson. Souzell later secured consent for a 627,000 sq ft Foster + Partners designed building.
Work on the site is not expected to start until at least 2018 at the earliest due to the ongoing construction of the Crossrail station.
LandSec chief executive Rob Noel said at the group’s May results this year that the firm would not pursue further speculative development this cycle and would instead wait for prelets.
