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Description
A rare opportunity to rent a spacious office in the renowned Barbican Estate in Central London. The unit, which is located in John Trundle Court, offers two large rooms, a separate kitchenette, WC, comfort cooling/heating and its own entrance. The rooms are light and bright with full-width glazing, they also benefit from two balconies. The space has huge potential, offering a blank canvas and would suit tenants with a vision to see past the current corporate decor (for example, the original concrete ceiling is behind the false ceiling) allowing them to put their own stamp on it.
Rent
Lease on a renewable 12 month sub-lease, £17,300 plus VAT per annum (£20 plus VAT per sqft) exclusive of business rates. The unit is a total of 865 sqft (80.36 sqm) but there is scope for diving the two rooms into separate units, the landlord (an architecture practice who are also located in the building) would potentially be open to this.
Transport
The Barbican is extremely well connected by transport, with a number of stations nearby including Barbican (Hammersmith & City, Circle and Metropolitan Lines), Moorgate and Old Street (Northern, Hammersmith & City, Circle and Metropolitan Lines) underground stations, Farringdon station and the forthcoming Crossrail Station.
History
The Barbican Estate is one of the most radical post-war brutalist housing schemes ever realised. Standing on a site which had been devastated in the Blitz, the ‘Barbican area reconstruction plan’ was initially conceived in 1947. By the early 1950s, architects Chamberlin Powell and Bon, who were already working on the neighbouring Golden Lane Estate were selected to work on the masterplan to design a mixed scheme with housing for 330 people per acre. By 1956 the scheme had taken shape and incorporated a school, leisure and cultural facilities, shops and a mix of low-rise residential blocks and Europe's tallest towers. Pedestrian walkways, formal residents’ gardens reminiscent of Georgian squares, a picturesque lake complete with a striking waterfall and fountains — all at varying levels — create order without monotony. Pedestrians are elevated onto highwalks (the podium), separating them from the dangers and noise of the traffic below.
It was originally thought to clad the buildings with marble but later rejected in favour of pick hammered raw concrete — giving the buildings a solid and unified look, visually similar to the later blocks of Golden Lane Estate. Semi-engineered brick is also used below the podium level to echo the materials of the buildings that had previously stood there.
A total of 2,113 flats of housing for 6,500 people was built, aimed at middle- to high income residents. The majority of the housing is either one or two bedroom aimed at young single people. To attract these potential wealthy residents, car parking for 2,500 cars, district underfloor heating, Garchey refuse disposal systems and a theatre were all incorporated into the design. Internally the spaces were designed to be luxurious, well-built with quality fixtures, lots of light and space, often utilising double height ceilings and full-height picture windows leading out to terraces or balconies. The Barbican Centre, one of Europe’s biggest art centres was officially opened by the Queen in 1982.
The Barbican was given Grade II listed status in 2001.