London’s second tallest tower has been given the go-ahead after a three-year battle.

The 1,000ft skyscraper – dubbed The Trellis – will be topped only by The Shard, which is 17ft taller.

Standing at 73 storeys and located between The Gherkin and The Cheesegrater, it will also be the second-highest in Western Europe.

However, it only measures a third of the world’s tallest building – Dubai’s Burj Khalifa, which is 2,716ft.

There had been concerns the development would have a significant impact on the Tower of London and fears that issues surrounding a Singaporean investor might stall the project.

But bosses at the City of London Corporation have now given the plans the go-ahead.

Under the plans, the tower – real name 1 Undershaft – will house up to 12,000 workers and cost hundreds of millions of pounds to build.

It has been designed by London’s Eric Parry Architects having been commissioned by Aroland Holdings.

The plans include a free public viewing gallery up on the 70^th floor along with an education centre that will host school trips and a restaurant.

It will also be home to the world’s biggest climbing wall, giving views from 120 metres up as climbers scale the inside of the glass.

An app will also allow workers to control how much light and heat they receive at their desks.

Eric Parry, director of Eric Parry Architects, said of the plans: ‘1 Undershaft will create more of the quality office space that is desperately needed in the capital and will reconnect the city’s tall building cluster with the public.

‘This building will set new standards for the City in terms of comfort, quality, environmental sustainability and putting the public at the heart of the tower.

‘Most tall buildings are used Monday to Friday but 1 Undershaft will be used seven days a week, with the public able to enjoy the new public square, viewing platform and restaurant every day.

‘It will be the jewel in the crown of the City of London and something we hope Londoners will be very proud of.’

Historic Royal Palaces – which owns the Tower of London – complained that the building would become ‘visually intrusive’ in the surrounding area and dwarf the dominance of the Tower.

A planning objection submitted to the City of London Corporation states: ‘Historic Royal Palaces objects to the current at 1 Undershaft because of the irreparable harm it would do to the setting of the Tower of London.

‘Our principal concern is the potential visual impact that the proposed development would have on the setting of the Tower of London World Heritage Site and therefore it’s Outstanding Universal Value.’

Approval was originally granted three years ago but was resubmitted following objections.

A start date for construction has not been confirmed.

Got a story for Metro.co.uk?

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at [email protected]. For more stories like this, check our news page.

Source: Read Full Article