Property Wire
Summary
King’s Cross, London’s 67-acre neighbourhood, is today, 8 October 2021, celebrating a 10-year anniversary. The milestone marks a decade since the opening of The Granary Building in Granary Square, home to Central Saint Martins, and the official reopening of the King’s Cross district to the local community and to London.
The anniversary also marks 20 years since the publication of the Principles of a Human City. Published in 2001, this pioneering document set out the 10 principles which have underpinned the design and development of King’s Cross, with a focus on creating a robust urban framework and lasting new place; and promoting accessibility and a vibrant mix of uses.
Over the past two decades, King’s Cross has undergone a complete transformation and is regarded as an exemplar for urban regeneration. What was a derelict and underused railway and industrial site, the King’s Cross Estate now boasts 2.7 million sq ft net of office, retail, food and drink and leisure space, providing capacity for 18,000 jobs, and is home to c.120 different businesses. King’s Cross is a key office district for London and has established itself as a hub for creative, digital, and knowledge-based businesses, making a significant contribution to London’s place as a world city. King’s Cross is home to 2.1% of all creative, digital and cultural jobs in London’s Central Activity Zone, representing a remarkable 20,000% growth in ‘knowledge’ jobs in King’s Cross neighbourhood over the past decade. In 2021, close to 1 million sq ft of new office space was delivered, and there is currently 0% vacancy across the whole office portfolio.
King’s Cross is also a thriving residential neighbourhood, with 1,120 homes and 750 student residences. With construction of a further 623 homes and 450,000 sq ft of office space currently underway, more than 40,000 people will live, work and study in the neighbourhood when the development is complete.
The Estate has also set new standards for social and environmental sustainability. The King’s Cross partners established the King’s Cross Academy Trust, which set up and continues to run the King’s Cross Academy primary school, co-located with Frank Barnes School for Deaf Children. The Estate also runs visitor, construction skills and recruitment centres and direct the site wide energy company, Metropolitan King’s Cross. This company owns and operates the district energy centre and cooling pod for King’s Cross, supplying all homes and commercial space with heating, hot water and cooling. The district energy centre runs combined heat and power engines, now powered by renewable ‘green gas’. This is just one reason why the Estate boats more BREEAM ‘Outstanding’ buildings than anywhere else in the UK.
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