By Richard Percival. Plans for a floor skyscraper which would tower over the City of London and rival The Shard have been thrown into doubt amid complaints the building would block sunlight and lead to a loss of public space. Proposals for 1 Undershaft, nicknamed the Trellis, and would sit at a height of If built, it would become one of the tallest buildings in Western Europe.
But this afternoon, council bosses did not give the green light for the plans over concerns open space where workers gather to eat their lunch would be lost in the City of London.
Councillors on the City of London Corporation's planning sub-committee voted by nine votes to six to defer a decision on the scheme. Eric Parry Architects, who have designed the plans for Singapore firm Aroland Holdings, say the skyscraper will have the highest occupied floor height in the UK, providing nearly 2m sq.
At the top of the towering structure will be a free public viewing gallery and an education centre that will host school trips. The tower will also feature an storey podium while the top two floors will be fully glazed. Plans for 1 Undershaft, which will sit at a height of The plans, Eric Parry say, would have the highest occupied floor height in the UK.
The architects said the design of the scheme aims to provide an 'efficient, refined and timeless' building. Objectors expressed concern over the loss of public space from St Helen's Square and a possible loss of sunlight from an overhanging garden, proposed as part of the scheme. Referring to the Square, Bruce Carnegie-Brown, chairman of insurance giant Lloyds of London, wrote to the City of London Corporation on Monday and warned the City was being 'robbed of a really important convening space'.
