Mace lands £130m City of London block

Mace has been appointed to revamp the Woolgate Exchange in the City of London.

The scheme to extend and refurbish the nine-storey building on Basinghall Street received planning permission from the City of London this week.

The job, estimated to be worth £130m by construction intelligence provider Glenigan, is due to be completed in October 2024.

Developer Stanhope said the building, to be renamed Woolgate, will provide 350,000 square feet of office space over basement, ground and eight upper floors.

Designed by architects Stiff + Trevillion, the scheme will include a 1,500-square-foot rooftop pavilion with views of St Paul’s Cathedral and 20,000 square feet of external terraces to promote urban greening and biodiversity.

The current reception area will be enlarged and a new entrance created on Coleman Street, in addition to a small park and retail facility.

The project team is targeting net-zero carbon in construction and operation through a reuse and retention strategy that aims to preserve 98 per cent of the existing structure.

The building, originally designed and built by Balfour Beatty, was occupied on a long lease by German merchant bank Portigon, formerly WestLB.

Stanhope project director Laura Collins said the development would have a big focus on sustainability.

“Woolgate embodies Stanhope’s commitment to delivering assets, investments and developments that actively contribute to the reduction of carbon emissions while still providing grade-A office space in the heart of the City of London,” she said.

At the end of last year, Mace secured a £120m job to refit Peterborough Court in nearby Fleet Street, which it said was its biggest interiors contract in more than a decade.

Mace Construct MD for offices Ged Simmonds said: “We look forward to working alongside Stanhope and our partners to bring the exciting vision for Woolgate to life.”