Developer Hub’s Square Mile co-living project with investor Bridges Fund Management has received planning permission from the City of London Corporation.
The Cornerstone scheme at 45 Beech Street, EC2, will convert the existing office on the site to 174 co-living homes, with additional greenery in the public realm and amenities including a café and co-working space open to the local community. The proposals also include more than £8.5m of funding to provide off-site affordable housing.
Shravan Joshi, chair of the City of London Corporation’s planning and transportation committee, said: “Co-living developments are becoming an important part of the mix for city living, particularly in providing more accommodation for young people, as we continue to transform the Square Mile into a thriving seven-day and evening destination, for everyone. Also, with the built environment sector accounting for around 40% of total carbon emissions, retrofitting is crucial for meeting our net zero goals.”
Both Hub and Bridges have also committed to reuse as much of the existing building as possible, with a target of reducing the total embodied carbon by 34% compared with an equivalent new-build.
Celia Harrison, director at Bridges Fund Management, said: “In London, as in many other big cities, we urgently need to build more housing to meet the needs of our growing population. But if we are to have any hope of meeting our net zero goals, we need to be doing this in a more sustainable way.”
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