Workspace (WKP) has secured planning consent to turn an old light industrial site near Canary Wharf into a densely-packed development with a mixture of housing, offices and industrial sheds. The company got permission for a similar project in Bermondsey in May and now seems to be rolling out the same densification strategy across its portfolio. The change of land use from low-value industrial to higher-value office and residential should crystallise substantial planning gains - though, perhaps, not enough to justify the unrelenting strength of Workspace's share price.
The latest announcement concerns Poplar Business Park, located a stone's throw from the Canary Wharf Crossrail station currently under construction. The 75,000 square feet of white van sheds currently housed by the site will be replaced by 58,000 square feet of offices, 12,000 sq ft of sheds and 392 apartments.
