The so-called groundscraper at the King's Cross Central development is the latest overseas property deal by the cash-rich U.S. internet group, which will house all of its London staff under one roof when completed in 2016. Swiss bank UBS is undertaking a similar large-scale low-rise scheme at the Broadgate complex in London's main financial district.
Google has spent about 650 million pounds to buy and develop the 2.4 acre site and the finished development will be worth up to one billion pounds, sources told Reuters. Construction will start early next year subject to planning approval and it will be one of the internet giant's largest offices outside its so-called Googleplex corporate headquarters in Mountain View, California.
Allford Hall Monaghan Morris has developed high quality, sustainable design concepts for the new Google headquarters that will provide a dynamic and flexible working environment for employees. The building will sit above retail units providing a diverse range of shops, cafes and restaurants.
The building, which ranges in height from 7 to 11 storeys, is scheduled for completion in 2016. Working with Google is a special opportunity to create an innovative new headquarters of scale and significance that both builds on King's Cross's rich tradition of heroic construction and contributes to the fulfilment of the development’s visionary masterplan.
The proposal for a campus within a building that engages with a new yet historical piece of London is a very exciting one that we look forward to developing further as the project moves through planning and onto site.
The project responds to Google's desire for a design that through innovation optimises resources to create a highly flexible, productive and healthy working environment that minimises its environmental impact in construction and use. Google's new workplace sits upon a retail plinth punctuated by three generous light filled volumes.
These entrance halls serve up and into a looped three dimensional promenade that wraps its way along, around, through and up the building's six to ten office floors, connecting cycling ramps, cores, workplaces, major shared amenities and a large roof garden in an easy and enjoyable journey that encourages encounter.