The London and Birmingham-based practice’s plans for Canary Wharf Group, submitted to Tower Hamlets last month, will retain the foundations and primary structure of SOM’s 10 Cabot Square, in Canary Wharf’s North Dock.
If approved, Howells’ scheme would add three storeys to the 35-year-old building, plus a roof plant level, increasing 10 Cabot Square’s total floorspace from 81,113m² to 88,048m².
The atrium and office floors will be reconfigured to allow for the introduction of terraces and daylight into the building, Howells said. On the ground floor, active uses will be introduced and ‘may include retail, entertainment and food and beverage units’.
In planning documents, the practice explained that, while the 1991 building’s steel frame and foundations can be reused, the current Neoclassical façade had deteriorated over time and ‘contributed to adverse effects on the building’s performance and aesthetics’.
A bright-red ‘high-performance façade [has been designed] to optimise thermal performance and operational energy use, whilst maximising internal daylight levels’, Howells added. The colour was chosen for its vibrancy, the practice said.
Planning documents say the development will help the development meet ‘the demands of modern office tenants and the ongoing development of the wider Canary Wharf area’, which is undergoing major changes, in a bid to attract new businesses, visitors and residents.
Number 10 Cabot Square was constructed as a purpose-built office building and formerly housed Barclays Bank, which announced it was leaving the building in 2023.
Elsewhere in Canary Wharf, Foster + Partners is working on plans for a 279,000m² tower for JP Morgan, while Howells last year won planning consent for a 46-storey student accommodation tower. KPF’s plans for overhauling Foster’s 8 Canada Square building, first mooted in summer 2024, are also thought to be in the works.
Work continues on WilkinsonEyre’s retrofit of César Pelli & Associates Citi tower at 25 Canada Square.