Cameron on board for HS3
The government has backed a report from HS2 chairman Sir David Higgins calling for a £7bn HS3 link between Leeds and Manchester. Chancellor George Osborne has set up a new body to co-ordinate the project. The Higgins Report also recommended an HS2 station at Crewe, in a blow to Stoke’s ambitions.
Topland offers Carter Jonas HQ
The West End headquarters of Carter Jonas has been put up for sale. Offers in excess of £60m – a 3.58% yield – are being sought. Schroders-managed WELPUT has appointed CBRE and Strutt & Parker to sell 35,000 sq ft One Chapel Place, W1. The block is also home to Johnson & Johnson and CoStar.
Consent for Granada studio site
Manchester city council has approved Allied London’s proposals for the 13-acre St John’s Quarter on the site of the former ITV Granada studios in the city centre. A formal consultation will now be launched on the circa 4m sq ft development.
St James unveils White City plan
A subsidiary of Tony Pidgley’s Berkeley Group has unveiled plans for 1,465 homes at the Marks & Spencer White City site, W12. St James has lodged Patel Taylor-designed proposals with Hammersmith & Fulham council for new buildings ranging from 10 to 28 storeys at 54 Wood Lane. The scheme would also include 21,474 sq ft of commercial space.
Pickles rejects ‘Tesco tax’
Eric Pickles has rejected proposals from 20 councils to impose an 8.5% business rates levy on supermarkets. The so-called “Tesco tax” was to be used to raise money to spend on local communities, but the secretary of state for communities and local government said the proposed tax would push up food prices and the cost of living.
