Flats plan for former office block
A PROMINENT office building in the centre of Cardiff is being turned into apartments following a multi-million-pound acquisition.
Knox Court, which is currently occupied by financial services firm Legal & General, has been acquired – subject to planning – by developer Urban Centric from Maya Capital.
Urban Centric will now work up detailed plans to transform the 60,000 sq ft building into a build-to-rent focused scheme.
It has yet to determine how many apartments could be incorporated into the building or whether additional floors could be added.
L&G will vacate the building next year for its new 100,000 sq ft headquarters in the city at the Interchange development, which forms part of the wider Central Square scheme immediately in front of Cardiff Central train station.
L&G will also vacate its other and larger site in the city, at Brunel House, for the Interchange.
With the pandemic accelerating the move to flexible office working, more office space and retail space is being repurposed for residential use.
Maya Capital bought the building in 2015 as part of its UK regional offices investment strategy.
David Pralong, managing partner of Maya Capital, which has an office in Cardiff as well as a presence in Exeter and London, said: “This sale represents another successful exit for our regional strategy and demonstrates that practical alternative uses are out there for transitional assets.
“We remain keenly focused on investing across the UK, where we continue to see substantial opportunity.”
Andrew Woods, managing director of Urban Centric, said: “This is our second acquisition of 2022. Our plans are to repurpose the existing building to EPC [energy performance certificate] A-rated residential homes that will be fit for the next generation of renters looking for high-quality living space in the city centre.”
The exact value of the acquisition has not been disclosed.
Property advisory firm Savills acted for Maya Capital on the deal, with Powell Lloyd acting for Urban Centric.