Derwent London has exchanged contracts to acquire the freehold of City Road Island EC1, the site of the Moorfields Eye Hospital and the UCL Institute of Ophthalmology, for £239m.
The site is being sold by Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and UCL, together the Oriel joint initiative, and is subject to receipt of final Treasury approval, which is expected in the second half of 2022.
Completion is also conditional on delivery by Oriel of the new eye hospital at St Pancras and subsequent vacant possession of City Road Island which is anticipated in early 2027.
Derwent London has appointed architects AHMM and plans to redevelop the 2.5 acre site into a major 750,000+ sq ft campus.
Paul Williams, chief executive of Derwent London, said: “We are delighted to have secured such an important central London regeneration opportunity in the heart of the Tech Belt, where we aim to deliver the next generation of distinctive ‘long-life, loose-fit, low carbon’ commercial space.”
Derwent said that on completion the acquisition is expected to have a marginal impact on the Group’s earnings.
DLN : Derwent buys Moorfields Eye Hospital