Capital & Counties has abandoned plans to sell a development in Wapping six weeks after marketing began, despite having selected a preferred partner.
CapCo, which is a subsidiary of Liberty International, had appointed Knight Frank to sell the Grade II-listed 140,000 sq ft (13,000 sq m) Metropolitan Wharf on Wapping Wall, E1, with planning consent for a redevelopment with a guide price of £10m-plus.
The former coffee and spice warehouse is one of Wapping’s last remaining Victorian riverside warehouses still in commercial use and had attracted a great deal of interest.
Forty detailed inspections took place and 20 bids were made, including one for £14m.
However, the CapCo board decided to halt the sale on the grounds that it should not be selling in the present market. It also pulled a £14m office in Edgbaston, Warwickshire, off the market.
CapCo director Bill Black said: “It is a difficult market to find stock at the moment, so we have decided to reinvest our cash into our own portfolio. Both situations require substantial work and cash.”
CapCo will now redevelop Metropolitan Wharf itself, providing 130,000 sq ft (12,000 sq m) of new business space and a restaurant.
Small businesses ‑ such as media companies, architects, graphic designers and textile designers ‑ presently occupy 80,000 sq ft in the building.
References: EGi News 25/04/05
