20 Fenchurch Street

20 Fenchurch Street was a large office building in the City of London.

It was 91 m (299 ft) tall with 25 storeys and was built in 1968 by Land Securities. The architect was William H. Rogers. [cite web | last = Times Online | title = William Rogers: architect of groundbreaking office towers | publisher = http://www.timesonline.co.uk | month = September | year = 2008 | url = http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/obituaries/article4753303.ece | format = HTML | accessdate = 2008-09-16]

The building was formerly occupied by Dresdner Kleinwort, and was notable for being one of the first tall buildings in the Square Mile, and for its distinctive roof. It was one of the towers nearest to the River Thames when viewed from the southern end of London Bridge.

In 2007, one of the upper floors was used in the BBC drama series, Party Animals.

The building is currently being demolished to make way for a much taller replacement.

The new building

The new tower planned by Land Securities will be a 160 metre, 36-storey building nicknamed "The Walkie Talkie". Costing over £200m, it is designed by the Uruguayan architect Rafael Viñoly and will feature a highly distinctive, top-heavy form which appears to burst upward and outward. The tower's design appears to have greatly polarized opinions.

A large viewing deck and sky gardens will be included on the top floor. These will be open to the public.

The tower was originally proposed at nearly 200 metres tall, but was scaled down after concerns about its impact on St Paul's Cathedral. It was subsequently approved in November 2006. Even after this reduction, however, there were continued concerns from heritage groups about its impact on the surrounding area. The project subsequently went to a public inquiry. In July 2007, this ruled in the developers' favour, and the tower was granted full planning permission. [cite web | last = Land Securities | title = LAND SECURITIES’ 20 FENCHURCH STREET TOWER APPROVED | publisher = http://www.landsecurities.com | month = July | year = 2007 | url = http://www.landsecurities.com/websitefiles/20%20FS%20Final%2010%20July%202007.pdf | format = PDF | accessdate = 2007-07-10]

The project now continues as scheduled, with demolition well underway. Most of the podium on the current building has been stripped away to reveal the steelwork. Desite the top-down method of construction, the old building was not demolished from the bottom up, as a temporary structure was built, allowing Keltbray, the demolition contractor, to demolish the building from the top down. [cite web | last = Skyscrapernews.com | title = London Demolition Derby | publisher = http://skyscrapernews.com | month = August | year = 2007 | url = http://www.skyscrapernews.com/news.php?ref=1063 | format = HTML | accessdate = 2007-08-10]

In their preliminary results for 2007, Land Securities confirmed the new tower would be completed in 2011. [cite web | last = Land Securities | title = Land Securities Group PLC Preliminary results for the year ended 31 March 2007 | publisher = http://www.landsecurities.com | month = May | year = 2007 | url = http://www.landsecurities.com/websitefiles/Preliminary%20announcement%20160507.pdf | format = PDF | accessdate = 2007-05-31] It was reported that Mace were likely to be appointed as the construction manager. However, the current economic downturn has now thrown this project into doubt, with millions of square feet of office space becoming vacant in the City.

ee also

*30 St Mary Axe, more popularly known as "The Gherkin"
*Plantation Place, a neighbouring office building
*St Margaret Pattens, a neighbouring 17th century church
*Tower 42, the tallest skyscraper in the City

References

External links

* [http://www.20fenchurchstreet.co.uk/ The official website]
* [http://del.interoute.com/?id=f8baf18e-10a4-4233-9b7a-4d019b48ec61&delivery=download 3D fly-through of the building]
* [http://www.communities.gov.uk/pub/805/Siteat20FenchurchStreet1415PhilpotLane10RoodLane3335Eastcheapandpartofbasementan_id1511805.pdf Planning report]