It's an exhilarating moment as a project years in the making reaches such a major milestone.
The £300 million transformation of Candleriggs Square in Glasgow that includes homes and a huge hotel and leisure complex has reached another significant stage with the completion of structural work for a 346-apartment build-to-rent complex, forward funded by Legal & General.
Candleriggs Development 2 Limited - the joint venture between Drum Property Group and Stamford Property Investments - first agreed a deal with Legal & General Investment Management Real Assets in 2020 to bring the £81.5 million apartment complex to the 3.6-acre Candleriggs Square site, in the Merchant City area.
Designed to meet the growing post-lockdown demand for affordable and high-quality city centre rental accommodation, the 325,000 square feet building will provide around 350 apartments together with a range of retail and commercial units at ground floor level creating an attractive and accessible public realm.
A "generous" entrance lobby will open onto the Trongate, giving direct access to a communal landscaped courtyard at the first-floor level, while a range of roof terraces will provide spectacular views across the city.
Also currently under construction is the 500-room hotel and leisure complex owned and operated by the pioneering hotel brand The Social Hub - formerly known as The Student Hotel Group - which is due for completion later this year.
Senior representatives from Drum, Legal & General and building contractor Graham Construction gathered to mark the occasion with a traditional topping out ceremony, each recording their signatures on the last concrete pour on the highest part of the building.
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It marks a new high point of the much-anticipated regeneration of the Candleriggs Square site.
Graeme Bone, managing director of Drum Property Group, welcomed the building’s structural completion as marking an exciting future for the city centre.
“Our significant progress at Candleriggs Square is fast becoming a highly visible symbol of the regeneration of Glasgow’s Merchant City and the city centre as it continues its post-lockdown recovery,” he said. "The L&G development is testament to the commitment and confidence we have placed in both the Candleriggs Square site and Glasgow city centre during very challenging times for our industry.
"It represents a significant step forward in the long-awaited regeneration of one Glasgow’s most prominent gap sites, driving forward the evolution of Candleriggs Square which has quickly established itself as one of Scotland’s largest and most important commercial and residential development sites.
"This will be a huge boost to the area and to local businesses and we can now look forward to bringing back to life a very special area which has always been at the centre of Glasgow’s commercial and social development.”
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Dan Batterton, head of residential at Legal & General Investment Management Real Assets, added: “We are proud to be working again with Drum following our successful partnership on the Solasta Riverside scheme at Buchanan Wharf.
"Through our development at Candleriggs Square, we are providing renters with an opportunity to move into a well-designed, flexible living space at the heart of the city, as well as supporting the local council’s target of 2,500 new homes per year over the next decade.”
Drum and Stamford’s joint venture launched the ambitious £300m plan to transform Candleriggs Square when they first bought the site in March 2019.
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