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Milestone for new icon on city skyline

A topping-out ceremony has been held to mark the final stage of work to complete the external envelope of the building, which is set to secure 1,000 jobs within the city.

The nine storey, 105,000 sq ft, high quality development on the site of Nottingham City Council's former Treasury Building near the Guildhall will become an iconic landmark on the city's skyline and has already been pre-let on a 15-year lease to E.ON.

The deal represented the largest office letting outside London in 2010 and last year Miller Birch announced the sale of the building to Leicestershire-based Charles Street Buildings Group.

Construction work on the scheme is being undertaken by Derbyshire-based Bowmer and Kirkland.

Peter Gadsby, Chairman of Miller Birch said: "Securing this key inward investment from E.ON, safeguarding jobs and creating an iconic building is all about reflecting the city and its people. The development could not have happened without the resolve, understanding and decisive action taken by Nottingham City Council.

"Clear direction from councillors right through to the officers leads to sure-footed decision-making and is one of the key reasons why Nottingham remains a premier city."

The company's Development Director, Mark Bielby said: "The ceremony marks a significant milestone and work now begins on the internal fit-out.

"We're looking forward to E.ON naming the building, which is scheduled to be ready for occupation in September.

"We are delighted to be working in partnership with Nottingham City Council, Charles Street Buildings and E.ON.

"When we first proposed the scheme we were excited by its potential and our initial optimism has been well-founded.

"It is a clear demonstration that imaginative development schemes in the right location can be successful despite the challenging economic climate.

"Nottingham is very much a centre of activity and this development is extremely good news for the city."

City council leader, Jon Collins, joined the topping-out ceremony alongside Peter Gadsby, the chairman of Charles Street Buildings, Hugh Murphy, E.ON's head of credit and debt management, Peter Penfold and John Kirkland, chairman of Bowmer and Kirkland.

Mr Murphy commented: "The Charles Street Buildings Group is very encouraged with the progress made on this development and looks forward to its completion.

"The building adds to the group's other properties in Nottingham at Castle Wharf, Clumber Street and Netherfield and is a prime example of the group's policy of re-investing rental incomes received to expand the portfolio.

"We have been impressed with all aspects of the development and wish E.ON and their employees a happy and fruitful occupation of the building once it is complete."

Mr Penfold added: "We're delighted with the progress that has been made and I know all of my colleagues who will work here are looking forward to the short move across the city centre.

"It was of great importance to us to ensure that this building was not only as green as possible but that it met the needs of our teams and would enable them to get on with helping our customers in the most efficient way possible.

"As it begins to take shape I know that has been achieved."

Mr Collins said: "Today's milestone is a significant achievement for this project.

"This development is a fantastic example of what can be achieved when a local authority and developers work closely together and share a common vision.

"As can be seen, the result is an exceptional, modern building which complements the surrounding area. The building will inject new life into the city centre and will attract a significant new workforce which will boost business confidence and benefit local retailers."

Source:www.thisisnottingham.co.uk|

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