Google Street View 20
Fenchurch Street
View Larger Map
Address: 20, Fenchurch Street, London, United Kingdom, 51°30′41″N 0°05′01″W
Floor count: 34 (plus three-storey 'sky gardens')
 |
| 20 Fenchurch Street |
Estimated completion: 2014
20 Fenchurch Street:
20 Fenchurch Street is a 37-storey skyscraper under construction on Fenchurch Street in London. It has been nicknamed the Walkie-Talkie and the Pint because of its distinctive shape. Upon completion in 2014 the building will be 160 m (525 ft) tall.
Costing over £200 million, it is designed by architect Rafael Viñoly and will feature a highly distinctive, top-
heavy form which appears to burst upward and outward. A large viewing deck and 'sky gardens' will be included on the top three floors; these will be open to the public.
The tower was originally proposed at nearly 200 metres tall, but was scaled down after concerns about its visual impact on the nearby St Paul's Cathedral and Tower of London. It was subsequently approved in November 2006. Even after the height reduction there were continued concerns from heritage groups about its impact on the surrounding area. The project was subsequently the subject of a public inquiry. In July 2007, this ruled in the developers' favour, and the building was granted full planning permission.
In their preliminary results for 2007, developers Land Securities and Canary Wharf Group said 20 Fenchurch Street would be completed in 2011, however in 2009 this date was pushed back to 2014.
It is one of a number of new tall buildings for the City of London financial area, others include The Pinnacle, the Leadenhall Building, and 52-54 Lime Street. Several insurance companies have agreed to become tenants of 20 Fenchurch Street upon its completion.
History of 20 Fenchurch Street:
The previous building at 20 Fenchurch Street was 91 m (299 ft) tall with 25 storeys and was built in 1968 by Land Securities. The architect was William H. Rogers.
The building was formerly occupied by Dresdner Kleinwort and was notable for being one of the first tall buildings in the City of London, and for its distinctive roof. It was one of the towers nearest to the River Thames when viewed from the southern end of London Bridge.
In 2007, one of the upper floors was used in the drama series Party Animals.
Demolition of the building was completed in 2008. Despite the top-down method of construction, the old building was not demolished from the bottom-up, as a temporary structure was built, allowing Keltbray, the demolition contractor, to demolish the building from the top down........Wikipedia >>
