City of London set to approve new office towers
Two new towers for the Square Mile will ruse up to 45 storeys.
9 July 2025
The City of London has resolved to grant permission for new towers at 63 St Mary’s Axe and 85 Gracechurch Street in the Eastern part of the Square Mile.
63 St Mary’s Axe will be a 45-storey scheme, with the Gracechurch Street development rising to 32 storeys. As the number of tall buildings continues to grow and consolidate within the “City Cluster”, the two schemes alone will deliver more than 110,000 square metres (sqm) of ‘best-in-class' Grade A, sustainable office space, accommodating more than 6,500 jobs.
Both towers have been designed to respect historic heritage views of the Tower of London and St Paul’s Cathedral, with both schemes also celebrating local heritage, through uncovering and displaying a recently discovered first-century Roman Forum-Basilica at 85 Gracechurch Street, as well as the London Wall at 63 St Mary’s Axe. It means the public will have two new free-to-visit destinations to appreciate the City’s history, 7 days a week.
63 St Mary Axe
This 45-storey, mixed-use office scheme delivers over 85,000 sqm of floorspace and a range of flexible, commercial uses at the ground floor and the lower levels. Additionally, the scheme will reveal and celebrate a surviving section of London Wall, with around 1,500 sqm of new public open space, elevated walkways and creation of two new ground floor pedestrian routes, complete with urban greening that includes 76 new trees.
85 Gracechurch Street
This 32-storey scheme for 34,000 sq m of office space was resubmitted following the discovery of the first-century, Roman Forum-Basilica and will now include a world-class, free-to-visit and immersive public exhibition. Wider proposals for the site promise to rejuvenate Leadenhall Market, by attracting visitors with an imposing new ground-floor public hall, with food, retail and event spaces. An historic pedestrian route between Gracechurch Street and Lime Street Passage will also be reopened, with a free-to-visit, fifth-floor public terrace within the new building itself.
Chairman of the City of London Corporation Planning and Transportation Committee, Tom Sleigh, says: “Every new building must earn its place in the Square Mile, and these are two standout schemes that do just that. Both 85 Gracechurch Street and 63 St Mary’s Axe capture the dynamic of our City: ambitious, inclusive, and rooted in our extraordinary heritage.”
