The City is set to gain a new 23-storey tower on the site of the listed Bishopsgate Bath House, after a new development on Old Broad Street was given planning approval.
The City Corporation’s Planning Applications Sub-Committee approved the new development at 55-65 Old Broad Street last week. The plan includes the restoration of a listed Victorian Bath House at the site, which the Corporation said will “become the centerpiece” of the new £500 million development.
The Corporation said the bath house will provide “space for new and inclusive education, cultural and community space, as the wonderful interior, influenced by Islamic architecture, becomes open and free to access to the public, artists and community groups from all of London’s communities, for the first time”.
Chairman of the City of London Corporation Planning and Transport Committee, Shravan Joshi, said: “With its contributions to our need for office space, improving accessibility for pedestrians and cyclists, transforming the City into a seven-day-a-week visitor destination, as well as our climate action goals, the 55-65 Old Broad Street scheme will become a great asset for the Square Mile.
“The dynamic juxtaposition of the ancient and the modern is a key aspect of the City charm and a characteristic we are determined to maintain. That is why we are actively looking for opportunities for development proposals to enhance and better reveal the City’s heritage assets, so that they can be accessed and enjoyed by the widest possible audience.”
The City’s skyline is set to be transformed over the next decade with a number of new skyscrapers in the works, particularly in the “Eastern Cluster”.
