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CarVal Investors, Orion and Quadrant Estates to develop 100 Cheapside
CarVal Investors, Orion and Quadrant Estates to develop 100 Cheapside
London – CarVal Investors and Orion European Real Estate Fund III have exchanged contracts with the City of London Corporation to jointly develop 100 Cheapside, with Quadrant Estates acting as development manager. 100 Cheapside will be a 94,000 sq ft Grade-A office and retail development located in the heart of the City of London, between the Bank of England and St Paul’s and has excellent transport links. The prime site is one of the last pieces of Cheapside to be redeveloped. The joint venture partners will demolish the existing buildings and develop a new BREEAM ‘Excellent’ building with completion targeted for 2014. The property will offer 11,000 sq ft office floor plates, targeting core City occupiers looking for Grade A space. The development includes retail accommodation totaling 9,000 sq ft, which is likely to attract major brands looking for exposure to the City retail market on this busy thoroughfare. The location will also benefit from the City Corporation’s Cheapside Retail Initiative, which aims to significantly enhance the local streetscape and will reinforce Cheapside as one of the City’s main shopping destinations. Michael Cassidy, Chairman of the Corporation’s Property Investment Board, said; “This deal reconfirms the City’s positioning on the world stage and demonstrates that key international investors/ developers want to commit to property in London’s financial centre.” Robert Balick, senior managing director with CarVal Investors commented: “CarVal Investors and Orion Capital are pleased to have this opportunity to develop a new building with the City Corporation on one of the best sites available in the City today. We are also delighted to work again with Quadrant as development manager. The new office space to be offered at 100 Cheapside should be one of the most attractive location/quality combinations in the City. It will be as prime as it gets.” Aref Lahham, managing director and founding partner of Orion Capital Managers added: “Orion Capital and CarVal Investors are excited about this project. Supply of prime new-built space in the City is constrained, and a large number of leases expire in the next few years. 100 Cheapside will appeal to a wide array of tenants in a market that is clearly hampered by the lack of development financing.” Tristram Gethin, managing director and founding partner of Quadrant Estates said; “This is an incredibly important site at the heart of the City. After the 230,000 sq ft Moorgate Exchange, now under construction, this is the second major City development we have secured in the last 12 months. This success reflects our focus on prime Central London real estate opportunities.” CBRE acted for the developer and BNP Paribas acted for the City of London Corporation.
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The City of London Corporation The City of London Corporation is a uniquely diverse organisation. It supports and promotes the City as the world leader in international finance and business services and provides local services and policing for those working in, living in and visiting the Square Mile. It also provides valued services to London and the nation. These include the Barbican Centre and the Guildhall School of Music & Drama; the Guildhall Library and Art Gallery and London Metropolitan Archive; a range of education provision (including three City Academies); five Thames bridges (including Tower Bridge and the Millennium Bridge); the Central Criminal Court at Old Bailey; over 10,000 acres of open spaces (including Hampstead Heath and Epping Forest), and three wholesale food markets. It is also London’s Port Health Authority and runs the Animal Reception Centre at Heathrow. It works in partnership with neighbouring boroughs on the regeneration of surrounding areas and the City Bridge Trust, which it oversees, donates more than £15m to charity annually. www.cityoflondon.gov.uk Contact: Sanjay Odedra 020 7332 1835 - sanjay.odedra@cityoflondon.gov.uk CarVal Investors CarVal Investors is a leader in managing opportunistic value investments. Since 1987, CarVal Investors has acquired more than $53 billion in assets in 3,980 transactions in 62 countries. The firm has opportunistically invested over $9.5 billion in more than 1,000 global real estate transactions since 1991. Today, CarVal Investors has over $9 billion in assets under management in both credit and real estate strategies. In Europe, CarVal Investors’ real estate team focuses on the office, industrial, residential and retail sectors in the U.K. and France. www.carvalinvestors.com Contact: Serge Maton 020 7292 7745 - serge.maton@carval.com Orion The Orion European Real Estate Fund III, C.V., is sponsored by Orion Capital Managers, a leading European real estate investment firm wholly owned by Aref Lahham, Bruce Bossom and Van Stults. Orion has completed €4.0 billion of real estate investments since its inception in 1999. Orion has a team of over forty real estate professionals with offices in London, Paris, Madrid, Milan and Luxembourg. Currently, Orion is investing the Orion European Real Estate Fund III with €1.28 billion of committed equity raised in 2009. Orion has funded in excess of 2 million sq ft of developments, re-developments and refurbishments across Europe. www.orioncapitalmanagers.com Contact: Richard Aylwin 020 7553 9331 / 07966 018252 Richard@aylwincom.co.uk Quadrant Estates Quadrant is a private property development and investment company founded in 1997. Its strategy is to generate strong investor returns through intelligent asset selection and effective asset management. The company has a development pipeline of assets totalling in excess of £800 million, to include the 230,000 sq ft Moorgate Exchange at 72 Fore Street in the City.www.quadrantestates.com Contact: Rebecca Cockman Goodford 07771 548 999 rebecca.cockman@sidecarcommunications.co.uk / Charlotte Freeman 07771 544 999 charlotte.freeman@sidecarcommunications.co.uk