January 18, 2013
Go ahead granted for Manchester Airport business district
The application to build a new business district within the government-designated Airport City enterprise zone in Manchester has been granted outline planning permission by Manchester City Council. The UK coalition government made the area one of its first four “vanguard” enterprise zones in March 2011 to provide fastrack planning and tax breaks to encourage rapid development. The application involves the creation of 113,400 sq. m. of office space, 49,000 sq. m. of industrial units, and 5,800 sq. m. of retail and leisure facilities on the outskirts of Manchester. The £650 million scheme is anticipated to create over 11,000 jobs over the next 15 years.
US based technology giant Google has completed the long expected £1bn property deal for a brownfield site in the King’s Cross Regeneration Area in London. The 2.4 acre site is located between King’s Cross and St Pancras rail stations and will be used for the development of an up to 11 storey complex which is due to be complete during 2016. Google will rationalise its two existing London locations into the new office and workplace design aficionados will be expecting great things from a firm that is renowned for its original approach, most recently at its 
The Menil Collection in Houston, by Italian architect Renzo Piano has been selected for the prestigious 2013 American Institute of Architects (AIA) Twenty-five Year Award. The neighbourhood museum set a new precedent in museum architecture and confirmed Piano, who designed the Centre Pompidou in Paris, as one of the world’s most trusted designers of cultural buildings. Recognizing architectural design of enduring significance, the Twenty-five Year Award is conferred on a building that has stood the test of time by embodying architectural excellence for 25 to 35 years. 
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No new building ever really deserves to be called ‘landmark’ unless it has acquired a nickname while still on the drawing board. That is why we can be assured that we will be hearing a lot more about the Kohn Pedersen Fox designed 38 storey HQ for US insurer WS Berkeley which has just been granted planning consent and already rejoices in the moniker ‘The Scalpel’. The new facility will provide over 500,000 sq ft of commercial space over 35 floors in Lime Street, East London. 
