DOOM: Canary in the Wharf

[AtW]

“Barclays set to shed investment bank offices

Chief executive wants to welcome staff back to the office, but wants a tenant for its investment banking hub

Barclays is poised to jettison the Docklands home of its investment bank with the company “open to offers” for the space, The Sunday Telegraph understands.

The bank is quietly looking for a tenant for its 5 North Colonnade offices, which it leases from landlord Canary Wharf Group, before moving its investment bankers into its main 1 Churchill Place headquarters nearby.

News of the move follows HSBC announcing plans to cut its global office space by 40pc in response to Covid-19. Lloyds Banking Group has also said it plans to cut 20pc of offices by 2023.”

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business...-bank-offices/

[courtg9000]

Dosen't surprise me.
Lots of firms shedding office space now.
A rumour I have heard is that Thames Valley Park (I wonder how many contractors here know that place well?) Might become a residential development.

[ladymuck]

5 NC isn't all that as an office anyway. Depending on what proportion of people need to be in the office, they could probably accommodate most of them in the HQ at 1 CP. They quietly dropped the offices they had at 10 SC and Exchange Tower over the years so it's no suprise that they're reducing office space.

[SueEllen]

It makes sense to have a mixture of residential property as well as offices in every part of any UK city/large town.

Retailers have found to their cost the issues of just serving offices (and tourists).

[vetran]

It makes sense to have a mixture of residential property as well as offices in every part of any UK city/large town.

Retailers have found to their cost the issues of just serving offices (and tourists).

Yep luckily the government have made it easier to change use type from commercial to residential. I am not sure I would want to live on the wharf those offices are huge and probably due for a massive refurb inside & out.

Apparently they will be full of workers soon, CW's Mandy Rice Davies moment.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...-March-29.html

The beginning of the END of working-from-home: Canary Wharf chief says 'gradual' return to desks will start from March 29 with restaurants and bars open by June - with expectation ALL 120,000 staff will eventually be back

• Canary Wharf's head of strategy Howard Dawber says as the country comes out of lockdown, workers will begin to trickle back to the offices in coming months
• Group expects to be back at full occupancy even if some still work at home one or two days a week as working from home becomes more 'socially acceptable'
• The Government's roadmap out of lockdown which detailed the reopening of the country did not include an official date for when workers should return to office

I suspect he will be disappointed.

[ladymuck]

There's loads of residential blocks around CW, within walking distance of Waitrose too.

[SueEllen]

There's loads of residential blocks around CW, within walking distance of Waitrose too.

I was thinking of other areas where there are very few dwellings. (I actually use to know someone who lived around CW.)

[AtW]

In a few years they'll knock down those empty high raisers and make a nice Central Park there.

[SueEllen]

This "story" was on the beeb news yesterday evening and night.

As usual CUK gets there first....with a non-story.