Shorts Gardens works commence

Construction firm Legendre UK has been appointed by property development and investment company Shorts Gardens Developments Limited (a JV partnership between Pearl and Coutts and Span Group) to lead the refurbishment of a complex site made up of two buildings located in the heart of London’s West End.

The project, designed by architectural practice Buckley Gray Yeoman with delivery managed by AWW, includes the refurbishment and conversion of an historical logistics building on Shorts Gardens. With a rich history as a private electrical station, home to London Electricity Board and believed to have been used by the Ministry of Defence during World War 2, the rejuvenated building will be a mix of commercial space including offices and shell-and-core restaurant space. This will involve splitting the 7.5-metre-high basement into two levels, as well as the addition of two floors on top of the building. Overall, the project will achieve significant improvements to the quality and amount available floorspace.

The second building, a former warehouse on Betterton Street, will be converted into four high-end homes, including a modern extension duplex apartment located in the two floors that will be added on top of the existing structure. A mezzanine floor will also be used for retail.

As well as the structural work, a number of contextual elements will need to be factored into the project, including a tunnel for the Elizabeth Line running under the site, multiple party walls, including one shared with a UKPN substation, and the very narrow streets around the buildings, making this site extremely complex and technically challenging.

Nicholas Emblem, from developer SGDL said: “Core to our development strategy is considered design with high quality construction delivery. The importance of finding the right contractor, who echoes this ethos and collaborates well with the project team was essential. Legendre UK stood out, have made the right start and together with the project team will ensure we maintain the attention to detail, quality and control through to successful completion.”

Legendre UK won the contract following a competitive tender process during which they demonstrated a solid understanding of the scheme, of its complex logistical constraints and of the positives a technically well-coordinated BIM scheme can bring to quality, programme, and delivery.

In recent years, Legendre UK has worked on a number of projects in London, having completed retrofit work on Parker Tower in Holborn, London in 2019 on behalf of BNP Paris Real Estate, and on the City’s LDN:W building in St Paul, London in 2021 for MEAG Group.

Thomas Vandecasteele, Managing Director at Legendre UK, said: “We are very proud to be working on this fascinating, and highly complex project, with our client SGDL. The regeneration of this site in the heart of London’s West End will ensure this part of the street integrates seamlessly in its lively surroundings of Covent Garden and Seven Dials. Technical projects are at the heart of Legendre’s expertise, and we look forward to bringing our international experience to many more UK projects in the future.”