Helical Bar is to bring forward the 80,000 sq ft mixed use redevelopment of 26-35 Drury Lane and 8-12 Dryden Street, after entering into an agreement with Corporate Pension Fund clients of Savills Investment Management.
Helical aims to submit a planning application for the scheme by September. Assuming this is granted the company will purchase the site for an agreed price of £42 million and undertake the development.
Upon completion the Pension Fund will receive a share of the profits and retain ownership of the 16,000 sq ft ground floor and basement retail element of the scheme
The 0.5 acre site is currently occupied by 65,000 sq ft of retail and office space which will be fully redeveloped to create 70 residential apartments, along with retail and restaurant space and an improved public realm.
Lucy Winterburn, Director of Investment at Savills Investment Management, said: “We purchased the long leasehold interest in this island site in 1997 when Covent Garden was considered very much a fringe location.
“During the period of ownership we have seen the market evolve and the location significantly improve. Helical Bar’s plans to redevelop the site are exciting and innovative.
“Our client’s ability to retain the retail element on completion whilst sharing in residential profit perfectly matches our long term goals for a site that has been a key holding for almost 20 years proving property can be a long game.”
Oliver Rippier, Development Executive at Helical Bar, welcomes the agreement and believes the scheme is in line with other projects in the area.
“We are pleased to have been selected as development partner and look forward to working with Savills Investment Management to deliver what will be an exciting mixed use development,” he said.
“The scheme will be an important addition to the rapidly evolving Covent Garden area and complement our other central London projects such as Barts Square, EC1 and The Bower, EC1.”
