MiddleCap, a real estate focused European investment company, has announced it has acquired the long leasehold interest in Seal House from Sellar which is retained as development manager to take the scheme forward.
Located adjacent to London Bridge, Seal House is a 1970’s office building on the north bank of the Thames and represents MiddleCap’s second UK property investment.
Two different schemes for the redevelopment of Seal House, which was completed in 1978, have been designed by Eric Parry Architects, including a refurbishment proposal.
Planning has been granted for a redevelopment of Seal House that would create over 200,000 sq ft of office, retail and restaurant space and features a public roof garden with fantastic views over the Thames and the City.
Johnathan Crawley, MiddleCap’s UK Managing Director, said: “We are delighted to have acquired Seal House and expand our UK property portfolio. We look forward to working with the Sellar team and will now consider which of the development options to take forward for this fantastic riverside site.”
Tomas Jurdak, MiddleCap’s Real Estate Partner, added: “The acquisition of Seal House underlines our commitment to the London Property Market. Importantly, it also ensures we are creating a balanced portfolio across Europe.”
MiddleCap’s other UK property development is the 70,000 sq ft Southworks in Rushworth Street, Southwark which is due to complete towards the end of 2020.
James Sellar, Sellar’s Chief Executive, commented: “We are delighted to have concluded the sale of our long leasehold interest in Seal House to MiddleCap, which we believe is a testament to the strength of the London office market and the city’s global appeal given the challenging political climate.
“It has been a pleasure working closely with both the City of London Corporation and The Fishmongers Livery Company, which owns the freehold of Seal House, over the past few years to create viable development proposals. We now look forward to working alongside MiddleCap to deliver a fantastic addition to the City office landscape.”
Knight Frank and Addleshaw Goddard advised MiddleCap while Savills/CBRE and CMS acted for Sellar.
