St George quits King's Cross scheme
BERKELEY Group's St George offshoot has sold its stake in one of London's largest regeneration projects.
Argent, a property arm of British Telecom pension fund manager Hermes, has bought out St George's half-share in the £2bn King's Cross project. The joint venture partners would not disclose the amount paid.
Planning applications for what is arguably the last major remaining central London development site, were submitted in May. The massive scheme covers 67 acres of land north of King's Cross and St Pancras stations, mostly in Camden.
It includes around 7m square feet of commercial space providing room for up to 30,000 people, and at least 1800 new homes to be built over the next 15 years.
More than 20 historic buildings, including four listed gas holders, will be refurbished and brought back into use. New homes are planned on the former industrial land, including a series of new blocks up to 19 storeys high.
Tony Carey, managing director of St George, said: 'Following the recent restructuring of the Berkeley Group, the commercial emphasis of this development no longer fits within the group's strategy.î
Argent Group's subsidiary Argent (King's Cross) Ltd will take control of the project.
Camden Council is under pressure-to grant early approval for the plans, but there has been opposition from some local residents, London Mayor Ken Livingstone's office and the Environment Agency.
Although the project is a cornerstone of plans to revive one of the more down-at-heel parts of central London, the Mayor's office has expressed reservations about design, transport overload and overcrowding and a lack of affordable housing.
Network Rail also has concerns, while the Environment Agency has warned of f lood risks and demanded a Flood Risk Assessment. Thames Water said the application was not sufficiently detailed. Local consultation has generated hundreds of responses but most have been broadly supportive of the development.
The site was handed to London and Continental Railways as part of the deal struck when the company took over construction of the Channel Tunnel Rail Link.
L&CR is still on track to open the new Eurostar terminal at St Pancras in 2007.
