100 Leadenhall Street, designed by SOM for the Lai Sun Development Group and its asset manager London & Oriental, had its planning consent ratified by the Greater London Assembly on August 13th, following the awarding of planning consent by committee on July 10th, 2018. SOM was selected to design the tower, due to be the third tallest in the City of London, after a design competition in 2016 between five renowned architectural teams.
At 263.4 meters, the building will be the third tallest in the City of London. It falls within the Eastern Cluster, a grouping of high-rise buildings that have defined a new skyline for the City. Providing over 1.2 million square meters of offices, the project is considered the last significant development opportunity in the Cluster. The tower adopts a tapered form to reduce the impact on popular vantage points of St. Paul’s Cathedral and other London landmarks. Its richly articulated facade incorporates a diamond glazing pattern. With sustainability as a priority, the building design incorporates a range of carbon and energy saving strategies to meet its targeted BREEAM Excellent rating.
The tower’s limestone elevations at its base reflect the existing character of Leadenhall Street, which is predominantly lined with stone buildings. The design provides a number of new retail spaces at street level, along with new pedestrian routes linking Leadenhall Street to St. Mary Axe and Bury Street. The proposal includes three new distinct public spaces: a courtyard at the south entrance, new open space at the north entrance, and a restored churchyard east of St. Andrew Undershaft, a Grade I listed building. Together, these design strategies link 100 Leadenhall to the wider public realm network, while providing an additional 929 square meters of public open space.
In addition to the new public routes through the site, a double-height through-lobby allows access from both north and south approaches. A separate entry provides direct access to a freely accessible viewing gallery that offers 360-degree views at Level 55 and a dramatic three-story view to the south, east, and west at Level 56.
100 Leadenhall Street will contribute to the continued development of the City as the world’s preeminent financial market and act as a catalyst for future growth.
“The City of London is a unique combination of heritage assets with some of the most internationally recognised buildings of the 21st century. SOM is proud to be a part of this architectural legacy. Our approach is sympathetic to this rich historic context whilst designing a building that combines our architecture, sustainability and structural engineering sensibilities into a landmark design,” said Kent Jackson, SOM Design Partner.
About Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP
Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP (SOM) is one of the leading architecture, interior design, engineering, and urban planning firms in the world. Since its founding more than 80 years ago, SOM has earned a reputation for design excellence with a portfolio that includes some of the most important architectural accomplishments of the 20th and 21st centuries, and has been a leader in the research and development of specialized technologies, new processes and innovative ideas, many of which have had a palpable and lasting impact on the design profession and the physical environment. The firm’s longstanding leadership in design and building technology has been honored with nearly 2,000 awards for quality, innovation, and management. The American Institute of Architects has recognized SOM twice with its highest honor, the Architecture Firm Award—in 1962 and again in 1996. The firm maintains offices in New York, Chicago, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., London, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Dubai, and Mumbai.
About London & Oriental and Lai Sun Development Company
London & Oriental is the UK investment advisor and property asset manager to Lai Sun Development Company, a Hong Kong Listed Company.