London – Canary Wharf

Canary Wharf is an area of London, England, located near the Isle of Dogs in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. Canary Wharf is defined by the Greater London Authority as being part of London’s central business district, alongside Central London. Alongside the City of London, it constitutes one of the main financial centres in the United Kingdom and the world, containing many high-rise buildings including the third-tallest in the UK, One Canada Square, which opened on 26 August 1991.

Developed on the site of the former West India Docks in East London, Canary Wharf contains around 16,000,000 sq ft (1,500,000 m2) of office and retail space. It has many open areas and gardens, including Canada Square, Cabot Square, Westferry Circus, Jubilee Park, and Crossrail Place Roof Garden. Together with Heron Quays and Wood Wharf, it forms the Canary Wharf Estate, around 97 acres (39 ha) in area.

History

Canary Wharf is located on the West India Docks on the Isle of Dogs. As journalist José Luis Jiménez explains, the name of this location stems from its use during World War II as a storage area for agricultural exports—primarily tomatoes, cucumbers, and bananas—from the Canary Islands. Its remote position, far from the city center, even included the Canarian Docks on its outskirts.

West India Dock Company

From 1802 to the late 1980s, what would become the Canary Wharf Estate was a part of the Isle of Dogs (Millwall), Limehouse, and Poplar and was one of the busiest docks in the world. West India Docks was primarily developed by Robert Milligan (c. 1746–1809) who set up the West India Dock Company.

Port of London Authority

The Port of London Authority was established in 1909 and took control of West India Dock. The enterprise of Sir Alfred Lewis Jones, a Welsh shipping magnate who was a prominent figure in the Canary Islands, Spain, led to a constant stream of ships arriving into London’s South Quay Dock and the naming of Canary Wharf, after the ships’ origin. It was named after No. 32 berth of the West Wood Quay of the Import Dock. This was built in 1936 for Fruit Lines Ltd, a subsidiary of Fred Olsen Lines for the Mediterranean and Canary Islands fruit trade. It is located on the Isle of Dogs, the quay and warehouse were given the name Canary Wharf.

London Docklands Development Corporation

After the 1960s, when cargo became containerised, port industry began to decline, leading to all the docks being closed by 1980. After the docks closed in 1980, the British Government adopted policies to stimulate redevelopment of the area, including the creation of the London Docklands Development Corporation (LDDC) in 1981 and the granting of Urban Enterprise Zone status to the Isle of Dogs in 1982.

The Canary Wharf of today began when Michael von Clemm, former chairman of Credit Suisse First Boston (CSFB), came up with the idea to convert Canary Wharf into a back office. Further discussions with G Ware Travelstead led to proposals for a new business district and included the LDDC developing an inexpensive light metro scheme, the Docklands Light Railway, to make use of a large amount of redundant railway infrastructure and to improve access.

The project was sold to the Canadian company Olympia & York and construction began in 1988, master-planned by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill with Yorke Rosenberg Mardall as their UK advisors, and subsequently by Koetter Kim. The first buildings were completed in 1991, including One Canada Square, which became the UK’s tallest building at the time and a symbol of the regeneration of Docklands. By the time it opened, the London commercial property market had collapsed, and Olympia and York Canary Wharf Limited filed for bankruptcy in May 1992.

Initially, the City of London saw Canary Wharf as an existential threat. It modified its planning laws to expand the provision of new offices in the City of London, for example, creating offices above railway stations (Blackfriars) and roads (Alban Gate). The resulting oversupply of office space contributed to the failure of the Canary Wharf project.

Canary Wharf Group

In October 1995, an international consortium that included investors such as Alwaleed, bought control for $1.2 billion. Paul Reichmann, of Olympia & York, was named chairman, and Canary Wharf went public in 1999. The new company was called Canary Wharf Limited, and later became Canary Wharf Group.

In 1997, some residents living on the Isle of Dogs launched a lawsuit against Canary Wharf Ltd for private nuisance because the tower interfered with TV signals. The residents lost the case.

Recovery in the property market generally, coupled with continuing demand for large floorplate Grade A office space, slowly improved the level of interest. A critical event in the recovery was the much-delayed start of work on the Jubilee Line Extension, which the government wanted ready for the Millennium celebrations.

In March 2004, Canary Wharf Group plc. was taken over by a consortium of investors, backed by its largest shareholder Glick Family Investments and led by Morgan Stanley using a vehicle named Songbird Estates plc.

Corporations and agencies

Canary Wharf contains around 16,000,000 sq ft (1,500,000 m2) of office and retail space, of which around 7,900,000 sq ft (730,000 m2) (about 49%) is owned by Canary Wharf Group. Around 105,000 people work in Canary Wharf,[95] and it is home to the world or European headquarters of numerous major banks, professional services firms, and media organisations, including Barclays, Citigroup, Clifford Chance, Credit Suisse, Ernst & Young, Fitch Ratings, HSBC, Infosys, JPMorgan Chase, KPMG, MetLife, Moody’s, Morgan Stanley, Royal Bank of Canada, Deutsche Bank, S&P Global, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, State Street, The Economist Group and Thomson Reuters. Until 2018, Canary Wharf also hosted two European Union agencies, European Medicines Agency and European Banking Authority, that moved to Amsterdam and Paris respectively due to Brexit.

Leisure

Marina

West India Quays and Poplar Dock are two marinas that are used as moorings for barges and private leisure river craft and is owned by the Canal & River Trust.

Library

A local public library, called Idea Store Canary Wharf, is in Churchill Place shopping mall and run by Tower Hamlets Council which opened on Thursday 16 March 2006 as part of the Idea Store project and is the borough fourth Idea Store.

Cinema

Canary Wharf hosts two multiplexes (cinemas), one on West India Quay run by Cineworld. and another at Crossrail Place called Everyman Cinema.

Go Karting

An over 800m long electric karting facility exists within Cabot Square. The facility can accommodate up to 20 drivers at a single time. Karts can reach speeds of up to 45 mph.

Squares and public areas

Canada Square

Canada Square is one of the central squares at Canary Wharf. It is a large open space with grass, except during the winter when it is converted into an ice rink. The square is named after Canada, because the original developers of modern Canary Wharf, Olympia & York, wanted to reflect their heritage. Underneath the square is Canada Place shopping mall.

Westferry Circus

Westferry Circus is on the west side of Canary Wharf. It is a garden at ground level, and below is a roundabout allowing traffic to flow through. The garden is enclosed by bespoke hand-crafted ornamental railings and entrance gates by artist Giuseppe Lund. The area has a long history, dating back to 1812, when the Poplar and Greenwich Roads Company operated a horse ferry between Greenwich and the Isle of Dogs. It operated on the West Ferry and East Ferry Roads, which the names survived. Westferry Circus was chosen as the name for the roundabout and park by virtue of its proximity to Westferry Road.

Cabot Square

Cabot Square is one of the biggest squares at Canary Wharf, with a large fountain at the centre. The inner perimeter has additional fountains covered by trees. The square has large circular glass ventilation holes to allow gases to escape from the underground car park. The square is named after John Cabot and his son Sebastian, who were Italian explorers who settled in England in 1484.

Churchill Place

Churchill Place is an area on the east side of Canary Wharf. It is named after Winston Churchill.

Columbus Courtyard

A small square on the west side of Canary Wharf named after Christopher Columbus. The first phase of Canary Wharf was completed in 1992, 500 years after Columbus arrived in America.

Chancellor Passage

A passageway south of Cabot Square. Named after Richard Chancellor who sailed with Sir John Willoughby from Greenwich on their voyage through the White Sea to Moscow.

Wren Landing

Small area north of Cabot Square. Leads to North Dock footbridge towards Port East. Named after British architect Christopher Wren.

Montgomery Square

Located at the east end of Jubilee Park, Montgomery Square is an outdoor location for socialising. Events include street food markets, beach volleyball tournaments, padel tennis competition, and minigolf.

Parks and green spaces

Canary Wharf Group is enthusiastic about adding more green spaces and gardens to the dense urban environment. A total of 20 acres of landscaped parks, gardens and verdant squares complete with 1,000 trees, 4,000 shrubs and 70,000 seasonal plants are added each year.[110] Visitors are welcome to explore these parks and green spaces, which are ideal places for relaxation, social gatherings, performances, viewing outdoor public art, as well as hosting outdoor events and festivities.

Jubilee Park

Jubilee Park is a 10,000m² roof garden located above Jubilee Place, a shopping mall, and Canary Wharf Jubilee Station, an underground railway station. The park, opened in 2002 and was named in honour of the Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II. Jubilee Park is located in the financial district of Canary Wharf. The park’s central feature is a raised serpentine water channel with rough stone walls. The curvilinear design of the water channel is intended to contrast to the scale and straightness of the surrounding buildings. In 2023, Jubilee Park won the Green Flag Award, recognising Jubilee Park as one of the United Kingdom’s best parks

Crossrail Place Roof Garden

A 4,160 m2 (44,800 sq ft) roof garden, one of London’s largest, houses on the top of seven-storey Crossrail Place structure, which contains the Elizabeth line Canary Wharf station. Opened to public in 2015, it lies almost exactly on the Meridian line splitting eastern and western hemispheres. The plants originating from the eastern hemisphere are planted to the East of the Meridian line in the garden, with those from the Western hemisphere on the opposite side. The design and development of Crossrail Place Roof Garden was honored by winning numerous prestigious international and United Kingdom awards. Selected notable awards include: "Best Urban Regeneration Project" at 2016 MIPIM awards in France, the first prize for the best "Innovative Design of a Contemporary Garden" at the 2017 European Garden Awards in Berlin, and a Highly Commended accolade at the 2016 Landscape Institute Awards in the category ‘Design for a Small-Scale Development’.

Harbour Quay Garden

A newly opened garden, located at the strand of Wood Wharf, features a boardwalk for waterside wandering. The garden also offers family-friendly picnic spots and outdoor fitness equipment on the green lawn, where visitors can relax, view outdoor public art, and watch the water. Just around the corner, it has access to a new garden square, Harbord Square Park.

Harbord Square Park

Harbord Square Park, the newest garden square in Wood Wharf, continues the great London tradition of garden squares. It is open 24/7 and offers green space available for mindfulness activities and to support nearby residents’ general wellbeing.

Eden Dock

In Oct 2024, in partnership with the Eden Project, the Canary Wharf group opened Eden dock. The waterfront green space can be accessed via Jubilee Plaza or Mackenzie Walk. It includes floating islands which are designed to encourage biodiversity.

Shopping malls

Canary Wharf shopping centre, ranked as one of the best in London, has five interconnected shopping malls: Canada Place, Cabot Place, Jubilee Place, Crossrail Place, and Churchill Place. The malls provide over 102,193 m2 (1,100,000 sq ft) of retail space, more than 310 shops from beauty, fashion, lifestyle, luxurious brands, health, and homeware, as well as 70 cafés, bars, and restaurants, eight grocery stores, five health clubs and a cinema. There are also numerous bars, restaurants, and food halls at street level, alongside plenty of outdoor seating enabling visitors to see the stunning wharf and riverside views.

Museums and archives

Opened in a Grade I listed Georgian warehouse by Queen Elizabeth II in June 2003, the Museum of London Docklands is one of the main attractions in the area. It is dedicated to the history of London’s river, port, and people from Roman settlement to the present day. The museum offers a range of activities for children and families, including interactive displays and immersive activities.

Pokémon Go

Canary Wharf has been reported since 2017 as part of the Pokémon Go augmented reality game to being the home for the most wanted Pokémon gyms in London including Canary Wharf DLR station and Montgomery Square.

Canary Wharf Group published an official Pokémon map for PokéStops and Pokémon Gyms, the managing director for retail Camille Waxer said in 2016 that Pokémon Go has serious potential to attract new audiences to the area, particularly food and drink outlets which saw an increase in foot traffic.

(Wikipedia)

Canary Wharf (dt. „Kanaren-Kai“) ist ein Bürogebäudekomplex auf der Isle of Dogs im Londoner Stadtbezirk Tower Hamlets. Er befindet sich im Herzen der Docklands, dem ehemaligen Hafengebiet der britischen Hauptstadt. Canary Wharf steht in Konkurrenz zum historisch gewachsenen Finanzzentrum in der City of London. Hier stehen drei der höchsten Gebäude des Vereinigten Königreichs, One Canada Square, HSBC Tower und Citigroup Centre.

Wirtschaftszentrum

Zu den Unternehmen, die sich in Canary Wharf niedergelassen haben, gehören Finanzinstitute wie Credit Suisse, HSBC, Citigroup, Morgan Stanley, Bank of America und Barclays. Auch bedeutende Medienunternehmen haben hier ihre Hauptsitze, darunter The Daily Telegraph, The Independent, Thomson Reuters und der Daily Mirror. Ebenfalls hier vertreten sind der Europa-Hauptsitz von Texaco, der Hauptsitz von Clifford Chance, eine der weltweit größten Anwaltssozietäten, sowie das Wirtschaftsprüfungsunternehmen KPMG. Bis zum Brexit war hier auch der Sitz der Europäischen Bankenaufsichtsbehörde (EBA).

Zu Beginn des Jahres betrug die offizielle Zahl der hier arbeitenden Angestellten 78.000, wovon 25 Prozent in den fünf umliegenden Stadtbezirken leben. Canary Wharf entwickelt sich auch immer mehr zu einem teuren und exklusiven Einkaufsviertel, insbesondere nach der Eröffnung des Jubilee-Place-Einkaufszentrums im Jahr 2004. Es gibt über 200 Läden mit mehr als 4.500 Verkaufsangestellten. Jede Woche gehen rund 500.000 Personen hierhin zum Einkaufen.

Canary Wharf verfügt über eine ausgezeichnete Anbindung an das Netz des öffentlichen Nahverkehrs. Seit 1991 hält an der Station Canary Wharf (DLR) die vollautomatische Stadtbahn Docklands Light Railway. 1999 wurde die Jubilee Line der London Underground eröffnet, die in der gleichnamigen, aber räumlich getrennten Station Canary Wharf (London Underground) hält, und 2022 wurde der Verkehr auf der neuen Elizabeth Line (Crossrail) aufgenommen. Der Flughafen London City liegt nur ein paar Kilometer östlich und kann mit regelmäßig verkehrenden Bussen, Taxis und mit der DLR in unter 15 Minuten erreicht werden. Vom Canary Wharf Pier aus stellen Schiffe auf der Themse weitere Verbindungen in Richtung Innenstadt her; die Thames Clippers verkehren unter der Woche alle 20 Minuten.

Geschichte

Canary Wharf war einst der Standort von Lagerhäusern inmitten der Docks. Der Name leitet sich ab vom Seehandel mit den Kanarischen Inseln, der von hier aus abgewickelt wurde. Während des 19. Jahrhunderts lagen hier die West India Docks, einer der verkehrsreichsten Häfen der Welt. In den 1960er Jahren setzte der Verfall der Hafen- und Industrieanlagen ein. Nachdem im Jahr 1980 das letzte Dock geschlossen worden war, beschloss die britische Regierung im Jahr 1981 ein Programm, mit dem ein 21 km² großes Gebiet neu belebt werden sollte. Um das Projekt zu koordinieren, wurde die Entwicklungsgesellschaft „London Docklands Development Corporation“ gegründet. In den ersten Jahren ließen sich hier Betriebe der Leichtindustrie nieder, der größte Mieter in Canary Wharf war ein TV-Produktionsstudio.

1984 besuchte Michael von Clemm, der Vorsitzende der Investmentbank Credit Suisse, im Auftrag eines Kunden die Docklands, um nach einem Standort für einen Lebensmittelverarbeitungsbetrieb Ausschau zu halten. Er war sich auch bewusst, dass die Büros der Bank in der City of London zu klein waren, vor allem im Hinblick auf die bevorstehende Deregulierung der Finanzmärkte im Jahr 1986. Von Clemm hatte die Idee, das Gebiet für Bürobauten zu nutzen. Allerdings war eine kritische Masse notwendig, um das ganze Vorhaben überhaupt rentabel werden zu lassen. Entsprechende Pläne wurden zusammen mit dem Unternehmen Morgan Stanley präsentiert, später allerdings wieder zu den Akten gelegt. Als 1987 die Docklands Light Railway eröffnet wurde, hatte man in Canary Wharf keine Station errichtet, da man nicht mit einer Entwicklung des Gebiets rechnete.

1988 übernahm das vom Immobilienunternehmer Paul Reichmann geleitete kanadische Unternehmen Olympia and York (O&Y) das Projekt und brachte es zur Baureife. Die Bauarbeiten begannen im selben Jahr, die erste Phase war 1992 abgeschlossen. O&Y, das auch das World Financial Center in New York gebaut hatte, verpflichtete sich, die Hälfte der Kosten für die geplante Verlängerung der Jubilee Line zu übernehmen. Zu Beginn der 1990er Jahre brach der weltweite Immobilienmarkt ein. Die Nachfrage nach Büroräumlichkeiten ging stark zurück und O&Y ging 1992 bankrott. Die obere Hälfte des Wolkenkratzers One Canada Square blieb ohne Mieter, Canary Wharf wurde zum Symbol der Immobilienkrise.

Im Februar 1996 explodierte in der Nähe von Canary Wharf an der Station South Quay der DLR eine Autobombe der IRA. Zwei Menschen wurden getötet, 39 verletzt. Es entstand dabei ein Sachschaden von 85 Millionen Pfund.

Im Dezember 1995 kaufte ein internationales Konsortium unter Vorsitz von Paul Reichmann[3] das Gelände. Damals waren hier rund 13.000 Arbeitsplätze angesiedelt, doch noch immer stand über die Hälfte der vorhandenen Büroliegenschaften leer. Ein wichtiges Ereignis für die Wiederbelebung des Projekts Canary Wharf war der Baubeginn der Jubilee Line, der mehrmals verschoben worden war. Von da an betrachteten Unternehmen das Gebiet zunehmend als Alternative zu den traditionellen Geschäftszentren. Die zunehmende Nachfrage ermöglichte neben der Fertigstellung der zurückgestellten Bauabschnitte auch die Realisierung zusätzlicher Projekte. Im März 2004 wurde die Betriebsgesellschaft Canary Wharf Group plc durch das von Morgan Stanley angeführte Investorenkonsortium Songbird Estates übernommen. Im Jahr 2004 belegten 70 Prozent der Büroflächen in Canary Wharf Banken.

Im Jahr 2014 wurde die erste bauliche Erweiterung seit der Finanzkrise 2008 genehmigt. Das am östlichen Ende der Canary Wharf befindliche Projekt Wood Wharf umfasst eine Fläche von 4,9 Millionen Quadratfuß[7], worauf insgesamt 30 Gebäude entstehen sollen. Als Herzstück soll der vom Schweizer Architekturbüro Herzog & de Meuron entworfene, 211 Meter und 57 Stockwerke hohe zylinderförmige Wohnturm errichtet werden.

Stand 2020 ist die Canary Wharf Group im Besitz des katarischen Staatsfonds und der kanadischen Immobiliengesellschaft Brookfield Properties.

Im Zuge der COVID-19-Pandemie zu Beginn des 2020er Jahrzehnts verkleinerten auch die in Canary Wharf ansässigen Unternehmen ihre Bürofleichen und lagerten Arbeiten und Mitarbeiter ins Homeoffice aus. In den 2020er Jahren kündigten viele große Unternehmen (darunter die Großbank HSBC, Moody’s, Clifford Chance) an, aus Canary Wharf auszuziehen. Der Exodus führt dazu, dass viele Gebäude enorm an Wert verloren. Gleichzeitig siedelten sich vermehrt Bars, Restaurants, Clubs, Fitness- und Freizeitcenter und andere kleinere Unternehmen wie Start-Ups in Canary Wharf an. In Wood Wharf wurden und werden Stand 2024 Appartmentkomplexe für mehr als 7000 Menschen gebaut.

Vorkommen in der Popkultur

In der Serie Doctor Who befindet sich im Bürokomplex das fiktive Torchwood-Institut, das im Finale der zweiten Staffel im Kampf gegen die Daleks und Cybermen zerstört wird. Die Ereignisse nach dieser Schlacht werden im Spin Off Torchwood erzählt.

(Wikipedia)

Posted by Michael.Kemper on 2018-12-04 19:55:44

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