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25 Cabot Square refurbishment | Canary Wharf

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Mr Cladding

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Discussion starter · #1 ·
McLaren tipped for £45m Canary Wharf office block revamp
Constructionenqurier.com
8th June 2017

McLaren Construction is understood to be in pole position to overhaul and extend one of the first generation offices built at Canary Wharf in London Docklands.

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The 25 Cabot Square building revamp is thought to be worth up to £45m and will see extensive changes to the office built in 1991.

Under the plan, the 390,000 sq ft building will be refurbished, with around 100,000 sq ft added through new steelwork extensions to the structure at 9th and 14th floor levels to create additional office space and new terraces. These will take the form of double height covered colonnades on the building envelope.

The proposals for the 16-storey building include significant works at plaza level to improve the entrance foyer and gym in the building basement.

Continued in article
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Discussion starter · #3 ·
Tower Hamlets planning reference: PA/15/03135/A1

External alterations, extensions and refurbishment to the existing building comprising infill of terraces on levels 9 and 14 and internal refurbishment on levels 8-14, relocation of gym as well as alterations to the facade at ground floor level and reconfiguration of the ground floor to provide to provide 1,890 sqm of additional office accommodation and 972sqm of retail (A1/A3) floorspace, as well as provision of associated plant. | 25 Cabot Square, London, E14 4QA
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#13 ·
Completely awful renovation.

25 Cabot is big but not a great building, so likely few will care. However, the few nice details this building has are about to be destroyed, and a third rate addition of a couple of floors, which bears no relationship design wise to the original building, is crazy. CWG and the architects should be shamed by such an appalling redesign proposal which has the potential to enhance the building rather than cause it to be uglier and lumpier. This does not seem to be a cheap reno, rather its a reno completely lacking in aesthetics, equivalent to classical early 20thC buildings being given international style architectural facelifts in the 60s.

The replacement of the pomo detailing at the front door for a large wall of glass is extraordinarily disappointing to say the least.
 
#16 ·
Reminds me of what was done at the Barclays building at Lombard St but in reverse (Top floors instead of lower floors)
 
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#17 ·
Hate people using that awful term 'po-mo' as it stinks of haughty distaste. It might be of the period (1991) but the building is one of the very best in the style and is a nod to the classicism employed by SOM in the late 20th Century.

I agree that to alter this building for a few extra floors and terraces is a gross disappointment. I especially find the crass reworking of the entrances, removing the graceful red granite arched entrances (a reference to Henry Hobson Richardson) with ugly rectangular frames encased in cheap-looking terrazzo is appalling.

But I guess once this has completed the memories of the original structure will have dissipated. At least the graceful 1st/2nd floor arched framing will stay hopefully. The top of the building, hiding the utilities and which mirrors the ground level 'arcades' in a sort of classical loggia was a brilliant idea. Clearly 20 years sees it as flippant and unnecessary.

The reworking looks ugly, out-of-pace, ill-conceived and totally destroys the building as a whole. The variety of structures in the first phase of Canary Wharf was admirable. The later phases, although some quite good in themselves, is becoming a monotony of steel and glass. They could have at least kept the original phase untouched, surely.
 
#18 ·
vile. wilfully, unnecessarily aggressive. Typical of this generation of architects who proclaim their "sensitive contextual" approach to all and sundry, but who shit on buildings of the generation before them at every opportunity...
 
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