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Cost of work at Saatchi building rises to £236m, developer Derwent confirms

Property developer Derwent London has revealed that the cost of work at its mixed-use development at 80 Charlotte Street has risen to £236m.

The new figure, revealed in the developer’s quarterly business update, is £29m more than originally planned and will allow Derwent to ‘significantly de-risk the construction process’ thanks to the installation of three metre ceiling heights across the property, as well as more efficient floor plates.

Work on the Charlotte Street site in Fitzrovia was announced last year, with plans to provide 309,000 sq ft of office space and 14,000 sq ft of retail, once the current property, which currently houses the offices of advertising agency Saatchi and Saatchi, was demolished and redeveloped.

The redevelopment will also see Saatchi move its offices to 40 Chancery Lane, another Derwent development in Holborn.

Also revealed in today’s business update was the developer’s strong start to 2016, with a 6.1% jump in average lettings compared to December 2015, with 185,400 sq ft let or pre-let so far this year representing £13.2m per annum of rental income.

Heartened by today’s figures, John Burns, Chief Executive Officer, commented: “We are encouraged by the level of interest we are seeing for our space, and the strong progress made so far this year across the business.

“Although uncertainty ahead of the forthcoming June referendum appears to have lowered investment activity, Derwent London continues to see little evidence of any slowdown in occupier demand for its middle market rental product.”

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