i see that AWG have walked away from the Shell Headquarters Development in Aberdeen

is the AWG / Cooper Cromar No 1 George Square still on the go or has it fallen by the wayside

its been pretty quiet of late


Developer walks away from Shell office deal

Ian Forsyth

Oil giant Shell is seeking a new developer for its £25million office expansion in Aberdeen.

AWG Property had stood down from the prestigious project at Campus Tullos before building work even got under way, it emerged yesterday.

Last November, AWG Property said it had been selected for the development, but Shell has now confirmed the deal is off.

A spokeswoman for the energy group said that AWG Property had been unable to meet Shell's requirements and the developer had decided to relinquish its position.

The oil giant confirmed in a statement that it had parted company with the proposed developer, but remained committed to the project and was looking at an alternative procurement route.

It is understood that talks are to begin shortly with another developer.

The Shell spokeswoman said it was not anticipated that a change of developer would put the completion date back. AWG Property was unable to comment on the situation yesterday.

The oil giant has already begun preparation work at its Tullos site in advance of building work.

A car park area will be the location of the new office.

The building will comprise 146,412sq ft of office space over seven storeys, with underground car parking. The structure will be built on a 4.45-acre site and accommodate around 1,000 Shell staff.

The first turf will be cut soon and work is due to be finished completely by December, 2008.

As previously reported, the project will involve about 300 construction staff.

The existing five phases of offices at Tullos have been built since 1973. The new phase six will mean that Shell can bring all its operations in the city together on one site.

John Gallagher, Shell's technical vice-president for Europe, said previously: "The new building will secure important Shell global project work for Aberdeen.

"Campus Tullos will allow Shell to create a dynamic talent base and enhance Aberdeen's position as a global hub for the oil and gas industry."

Shell has around 2,500 employees in Aberdeen.

About 10-15% of their workload is for global projects outside Europe, in locations such as west Africa, the Far East, Russia and the Middle East.

This percentage is expected to increase substantially in the years ahead as the UK North Sea workload falls as a result of oil and gas reserves dwindling.

But, as a result of the upswing in worldwide developments, it is anticipated the total Shell workforce in Aberdeen will actually increase in the years ahead.

They are piling George Square now the demolition is finished are they not?

are they ? cool

do you know who the contractor is ?

Irish mob I think. McLaughin & Harvey

ah.........there the ones that are "aledgedly" buying Barr

will be an interesting project, im looking forward to watching it progress

whats everyones thoughts on the glass roof extension

G1 applying for resturant units @ 1 George Sq. :)

Reference: 09/01983/DC Community Cnl: Merchant City
Address: 1 George Square Glasgow G2 1DY
Proposal: Use of vacant ground floor units in listed building as restaurants.
Date Received: 25.08.2009 Date Valid: 30.09.2009
Applicant
Details: Dragon Developments (G1) Ltd
Agent Details: 0141 332 2570
Cooper Cromar
Newton House 457 Sauchiehall Street GLASGOW
Ward: Anderston/City
Type: Full Planning Permission Level: Local Development
Case Officer: Ms G Black, 0141 287 6065
Listing: A Cons Area: Central Area
Map Reference: (E) 259285 (N) 665325

Nice one. If the pedestrianisation goes ahead this will complement the square nicely.

Pukka location for Oliver as he opens first Scots eaterie in city
21 January 2010

Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver is to open a large Italian restaurant in the centre of Glasgow in the early summer.

The mid-priced Jamie’s Italian restaurant, which will have more than 250 tables, will take up the ground and lower-ground levels of the nine-storey former General Post Office (GPO) building on the south side of George Square.

Due to open in May, it will be the latest addition to the well-regarded Jamie’s Italian chain of eateries that have been opening in towns in the south of England over the past 18 months.

The Glasgow restaurant aims to offer “rustic, simple dishes” sourced both locally and from elsewhere in the UK. There will be seasonal produce, daily fresh pasta and a kitchen that will be completely visible to customers.

But those hoping to catch a glimpse of the celebrity while they wait for their dinner are likely to be disappointed. Oliver is expected to visit staff ahead of the launch for a pep-talk, but he won’t be cooking.

Publicist Peter Berry said: “He’s busy. We have an excellent team of chefs, including [BBC One Saturday Kitchen presenter] Gennaro Contaldo, Jamie’s mentor, who will be up there for a few days making sure that the kitchen is working to its maximum potential. But Jamie doesn’t cook in the kitchens. He devises the menus along with Gennaro.”

With or without Oliver, the chain recently received a glowing write-up in the Harden’s UK Restaurant Guide 2010, unlike TV rivals such as Gordon Ramsay and Marco-Pierre White.

Harden’s said that Jamie’s Italian was, “... the first time I can think of where a celebrity chef has made a positive contribution to a middle-market chain”.

While Oliver’s Fifteen restaurant for promising but wayward young chefs in London was dismissed as “very over-priced” and a “soulless basement”, the Italian chain was praised for having chosen locations in cities such as Bath, Oxford and Brighton with a lack of mid-priced options.

There are currently seven outlets, with openings due in Cambridge, Reading and Leeds in the months before the Glasgow venue opens.

Having made his name in series such as the BBC’s The Naked Chef and Channel 4’s Jamie’s School Dinners, the launch will mark yet another move beyond television into business for 34-year-old Oliver. He opened the Fifteen restaurant near London’s Old Street in 2002, followed by other outlets in Cornwall, Amsterdam and Melbourne.

He has a long-term, controversial £1.2m tie-up with Sainsbury’s; sells branded food products such as pesto and pasta sauces; and has put his face to over a dozen books, most recently including Jamie’s Ministry of Food and Jamie’s America.

According to the Sunday Times Rich List 2009, he is worth £40 million.

Meanwhile, the move is welcome news for the former GPO building, which has lain empty for more than 10 years.

Earlier this month the chef told BBC Good Food Magazine he would love to open a restaurant in Glasgow, describing the city as a “really cool place”.


http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/home-news/pukka-location-for-oliver-as-he-opens-first-scots-eaterie-in-city-1.1000301

Excellent. This is just what George Square needs, public interaction at ground floor to give the GPO the feeling of being part of the square rather than being the boundary wall.

Don't know how good the food will be as really is just a chain, but hey if they are willing to take the risk and invest in such a prominent location we should give them lots of credit, especially in these tough times

ET (http://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/news/editor-s-picks-ignore/70m-makes-ex-gpo-building-look-first-class-1.1003204)


£70m makes ex-GPO building look first class

http://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/polopoly_fs/7923098-1.1003205!image/876938969.JPG_gen/derivatives/landscape_620/876938969.JPG

Finishing touches to the former Post Office building in Glasgow’s George Square will be completed within weeks

Published on 2 Feb 2010

It has taken four years of work, but the wraps have now come off to show the £70million transformation of the historic former Post Office building in Glasgow’s George Square.

Builders are putting the finishing touches to the 130-year-old A-listed structure and work will be completed within weeks.

The building has been surrounded by scaffolding and massive tarpaulins for around 10 years, but has finally emerged in all its glory. Only the facade of the original building remains because the interior was demolished to make way for smart office accommodation.

Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver plans to open a large Italian restaurant in the ground and basement of the property.

And it is understood finance company Ernst and Young is considering the upper floors for its new Glasgow headquarters.

The iconic building, near the City Chambers, was the headquarters of the General Post Office until, in 1969, it became the Post Office. It closed in 1995.

The building was taken over in 1999 by Stefan King, owner of the G1 Group, but lay empty and behind hoardings until he sold it to HF Developments in 2005 for more than £11m.

The G1 Group said it was not able to identify any suitable redevelopment plans that fitted in with its extensive leisure portfolio.

Demolition of the interior began in 2006 and was completed the following year.

It has been estimated Number One George Square will house around 127,000 sq ft of office space and could attract as many as 1200 jobs to the city centre.

City centre councillor Gordon Matheson said: “What a joy to see the scaffolding finally being taken down from the former GPO after all these years.

“The building has been fully restored and is looking magnificent. The history of this building and its prestigious location in George Square gives it

a special place in the hearts of Glaswegians.

“This is the latest in a series of developments that give the city hope for the future.”

A spokesman for HF Developments said: “The building is looking fabulous and the views from the upper floors are phenomenal.

“It is the best office space in the city and we think it is fit for the civic, commercial and cultural heart of the city.

“It is a reflection of the building that Jamie Oliver was looking at Edinburgh and could not find a building that works for him.”

When the redevelopment was granted planning permission HF managing director William Hill said: “I think everyone in Glasgow has a desire to see this particular property brought back into use again following so many years of lying vacant.

“We aim to keep the frontage of the building intact but will create a modern, desirable and employee-friendly facility behind it, which will rival any office development in Scotland.”

The building was taken over in 1999 by Stefan King, owner of the G1 Group, but lay empty and behind hoardings until he sold it to HF Developments in 2005 for more than £11m.

The G1 Group said it was not able to identify any suitable redevelopment plans that fitted in with its extensive leisure portfolio.'

Well thats a f***ing relief. Can you imagine having another generic piece of crap that he would have ruined the building with?

£70 million???

This must be a case of think of a number and double it?

£70 million???

This must be a case of think of a number and double it?

Facade retention and piling within a retained structure are actually extremely expensive businesses. Add that to the George Square location for logistics and the costs mount.

If you want to look at crazy figures, looka the the "new" St Enoch Centre. £100M for a lick of paint and some reconstituted stone slapped on the front.

It looks like Jamie Oliver is opening a restaurant in No 1 George Square one of his Jamie's Italian (http://www.jamieoliver.com/italian/).

Planning application 10/00308/DC (http://www.glasgow.gov.uk/NR/rdonlyres/793906EA-37A3-43A6-A99A-2779C517F3F0/0/08_1702_2302.pdf)for new signs.

Work begins on Oliver’s eaterie
30 April 2010

http://www.heraldscotland.com/polopoly_fs/8956657-1.1024143!image/3768611546.JPG_gen/derivatives/landscape_300/3768611546.JPG
Anticipation: Jamie Oliver’s Glasgow restaurant will open in July.


Work has started on Jamie Oliver’s new restaurant in Glasgow.

Jamie’s Italian, which aims to be “accessible and affordable” will be unveiled in early July. Builders are now at the site on the corner of George Square and Hanover Street.

And new signs announce job opportunities, with up to 100 positions for chefs, managers, bar and waiting staff on offer.

A spokesman for the TV chef said the branches of the chain usually open quietly although he confirmed that Oliver, 34, does visit to meet the staff “when his diary allows”. However, he doesn’t cook in the restaurants.

The restaurant will take up the ground and lower-ground levels of the nine-storey former General Post Office building on the south side of George Square. It will feature an open kitchen and space for 250 diners.

It is part of the £70 million redevelopment of the 1875 building. The frontage has been retained but a new building has been constructed behind it.

It will be Oliver’s first restaurant in Scotland, although there are already nine UK branches of the chain.



http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/home-news/work-begins-on-oliver-s-eaterie-1.1024142

May 17th
2011


HFD Group Awarded Best Commercial Workplace for g1 Glasgow

http://www.g1glasgow.com/images_main/gallery/buildingGallery_f1.gif



Leading commercial property developers, the HFD Group (HFD), have been awarded Scotland’s Best Commercial Workplace award at the recent British Council for Offices (BCO) Awards for their outstanding development of g1 Glasgow.

G1 Glasgow was purchased in late 2005, semi-derelict as a result of having lain vacant for 10 years. A blight in George Square, the commercial, cultural and civic heart of Glasgow, a £70m re-development has returned the building into the most desirable address in the City. Within a year of opening, the building is 94% let, with an impressive tenant list covering Ernst & Young, Maclay Murray & Spens, Gardiner & Theobald, Mercers, Jamie’s Italian and Browns Brasserie.

HFD’s Development Director, Stephen Lewis explained “From the outset, we were convinced that we were setting the benchmark for office accommodation, which ultimately would attract the highest calibre of occupiers. The quality of the occupiers securing space in the building is affirmation that we have delivered on that brief.

“We are immensely proud that G1 not only sets the standard for city centre working environments, but it has also made such a substantial, positive contribution to re-activating the southern corner of George Square. We are delighted to receive an award from the BCO which provides yet further confirmation of the building’s quality, and reflects the considerable hard work and effort by the project team.”

John Sheperd, BCO judging chair for Scotland, commented “The preservation of Victorian architecture combined with the creation of a working environment which meets the BCO guidelines for modern office space has produced an outstanding, beautiful building. This, along with the contribution the building has made to help re-generate George Square, Glasgow’s most prominent civic space, made G1 a most deserving winner.”

G1 Glasgow will now go on to compete for the “Best of the Best” award the BCO national awards later in the year.

With over 120,000 sq ft let within 12 months, a limited window of opportunity now remains to acquire the remaining 7,300 sq ft on the fourth floor.

Source: HFD Group

www.hfdgroup.com

G1 (http://www.g1glasgow.com/index.html)

17 May 2011