EG’s must reads: 8-12 July

Here’s a wrap-up of some of the top stories on EG from the past week. The London Property Alliance has urged the new government to adopt a growth-oriented planning policy, estimating that 407,000 jobs and 55.7m sq ft of commercial floorspace could be unlocked in central London by 2045 – the equivalent of 39 new Shards, and worth £101bn to the economy. The trade body’s Good Growth for Central London report, produced with consultancy Arup, said a more development-friendly approach would reverse a fall of 54% between 2013 and 2024 in office planning applications in London’s important central activities zone, which generates £315bn a year for the UK economy.Real estate calls for ‘balanced’ policy to unlock £100bn+ growthLondon’s deputy mayor: Time to celebrate the built environment Property Market Analysis, a consultancy, has taken the top floor of the recently repositioned office building at 33 Kingsway, WC2. The firm will occupy 5,308 sq ft of workspace on a 15-year lease. The deal is the first since Stars REI redeveloped the 60,000 sq ft building with a refurbishment overseen by Rolfe Judd Architecture.Revamped Kingsway office block signs first tenant In a quirkier office redevelopment proposal, plans to transform a 19,000 sq ft block in Crawley, West Sussex, into a 28-bay electric vehicle charging hub have been revealed. Investor and developer Sixpenny Group has formed a joint venture with developer Arcus-PCD to deliver the scheme at the Manor Royal Business District. Egor Shestakov, director at Sixpenny Group, described the plans as “a fantastic opportunity to transform unproductive office space into EV facilities that are very much in demand”.Crawley office-to-EV charging hub plans unveiled The UK’s build-to-rent sector has arguably matured, but there could still be growing pains ahead as domestic and international investors alike get to grips with a changing marketplace. In late June, a group of industry leaders gathered for an EG roundtable hosted by Savills at its offices in central London to share their thoughts on lessons learnt and the next steps for the operational BTR sector.BTR: from groundwork to growth British Land and AustralianSuper have signed a memorandum of understanding with King’s College London to establish a science and technology innovation campus at the joint venture’s 53-acre Canada Water development. Emma Cariaga, joint head of Canada Water at British Land, said: “As an opportunity of scale, with proximity to most of London’s major teaching hospitals and the university itself, we have the perfect melting pot for science and technology businesses to think about Canada Water as they determine where they want to locate their business.”British Land teams up with King’s for Canada Water science campus Other stories you mustn’t miss: Multi boss on the firm’s return to UK retailLLDC urges developers to drive gender bias out of designCriterion Capital eyes St Christopher’s as BCPT disposals mountDrake-backed chicken chain to launch in LondonMJ Gleeson boss optimistic on Labour’s planning promisesDWS’s Hardman quits for new venture with DowningLothbury offloads Oxford office with record rentsDelancey’s £400m King’s Cross lab project up for approvalLambert Smith Hampton lifts 29 in promotion round Image © Ismail Merad/Unsplash