Demolition completed of 103,000 sq ft city centre office building
The demolition of a 103,000 sq ft office building in York city centre, earmarked for a new mixed-use scheme, has now been completed.
Property investment firm Palace Capital, owners of the two-acre site on Toft Green, appointed demolition specialists Squibb Group to knock down Hudson House that was originally built in the late 1960’s by the former British Rail.
Plans for the building’s redevelopment, which has been renamed Hudson Quarter to represent the site’s heritage, was approved in August last year.
The masterplan for the site includes 127 apartments, 34,500 sq ft of Grade-A office space and 5,000 sq ft of other commercial uses, located in four buildings around a landscaped central courtyard.
The scheme will also include a new landscaped link from the train station, opposite the site, through to Toft Green and then onto Micklegate.
Work is expected to start on the construction of Hudson Quarter in February 2019 and a main contractor will be announced before the end of the year.
Neil Sinclair, CEO of Palace Capital, said: “The completion of the complex demolition process heralds a key landmark for the project and demonstrates our commitment to delivering this development for completion in early 2021.
“Hudson Quarter will be a vibrant community for people to live and work. The branding represents a new beginning for this part of York and offers a unique opportunity to create a new quarter in the heart of the city.”
Sinclair added: “Even at this early stage in the development process, we have been encouraged with the considerable amount of interest in both the apartments and office space.
“The design of Hudson Quarter by Fuse Studios of Leeds is both modern yet sympathetic to the incredibly important heritage that surrounds it and we will deliver an exceptional scheme that York can be proud of.
“The fantastic connectivity of the development, in both transport and technology, gives us great encouragement that it will be a stunning success.”
Andrew Sharp of Make it York, the city’s destination management organisation, said: “We are seeing strong growth in a number of sectors in York including financial and professional services and technology sectors, which is in turn creating strong demand for high quality space within the city centre.
“York is an ideal place from which to do business, it is less than two hours to London by rail and has some of the fastest internet anywhere in the country. The Hudson Quarter redevelopment will take full advantage of this, bringing forward a striking new development in a fantastic location with great access to the rail station and York’s vibrant city centre”.
Residential agents for the development are Carter Jonas and Hudson Moody and Sanderson Weatherall and JLL are the agents for the office building.
The Ideas Group, York-based brand design and marketing agency, produced the new branding for the development.
