Go-ahead for London student tower and migration museum

3/5/23

The 21-storey building at 65 Crutched Friars close to Fenchurch Street in the Square Mile will house nearly 770 student bedrooms, 35% of which will be classed as affordable housing.

Designed by Danish architect 3XN, the scheme will also create a new permanent home for the Migration Museum, currently based in Lewisham, over three floors including exhibition and event space, a cafe and shop.

Demolition plans for the existing 5-storey, 1980s office building at the site were drawn up by Cantillon although no demolition or building contractor has been signed up yet for the 4-year build programme on the 295,000 sq ft scheme, which is expected to have a development value of around £240m.

Dominus principal director Jay Ahluwalia said: "Getting these plans approved is a huge moment as we cement our position in the PBSA sector.

"When we started out back in 2011, the goal was to build a real estate business that wasn't only scalable and fast-growing, but was philanthropic at heart, going above and beyond to improve people's lives."

It follows Dominus' project at 61-65 Holborn Viaduct, a 644-unit student accommodation development.

Over the last 10 years, Dominus, led by brothers Husnell, Preet, and Jay Ahluwalia, has completed 35 projects and now has 16 more currently in development.

Building on its hotel expertise, it is now expanding significantly into student accommodation and the build-to-rent market, as well as plans to set up a new investment fund.

Source: Construction Enquirer