London's City Hall building, which Boris Johnson dubbed the “glass gnada”, will be renovated three years after Sadiq Khan left it empty.

Projects to transform the London City Hall building, formerly nicknamed “glass gnada” by Boris Johnson in shops, restaurants and offices has been approved by local councillors, three years after being left empty by the Mayor of London Sadiq Khan.

The building, which once housed the Mayor of London and the London Assembly, sat unused for three years after Khan moved his offices to an east London conference center to cut costs.

The building will now undergo a renovation with the removal of the exterior glass covering and the addition of new balconies.

The plans were submitted by the building's owner, Kuwait-based St Martins Property Investments.

Southwark Council planning officers have recommended changes be approved to modernize the building and surrounding area.

At a planning meeting yesterday, councilors gave the go-ahead.

Charlie Prentis, senior asset manager at St Martins, said that after the mayor and Assembly speaker left, the owner looked for a new occupant as quickly as possible, but discovered the building was in need of renovation. 'significant improvements to become rented again.

He said the “complicated facade” gave a “bad perspective” to views of London and that inefficient floor plates and poor Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) performance meant changes were needed to create a more sustainable building for the future.

Artistic impression shows what the city hall building would look like after the changes

The building will undergo renovations with the removal of exterior glass and the addition of new balconies.

London City Hall's Southwark building has been vacant for three years since London Mayor Sadiq Khan moved the London Assembly.

He insisted St Martins believed it was still a great building, with distinctive features they did not want to lose as part of the renovation.

Council officials said the project would create 145 new jobs.

Liberal Democrat councilor Emily Tester, speaking at the meeting, said it was a shame the building had remained empty for so long.

She added: “I have to say that this is not necessarily the most interesting project proposed, but it is certainly not a material planning consideration and I see no reason to reject it.

“I really hope the retail offering is good and complements what is on offer elsewhere. I can't wait to see this come into use again.

Boris Johnson once nicknamed the building the glass gnat and Ken Livingstone described it as a glass testicle.

In 2020, the building cost GLA 11.1 million per year including rent to St Martins, plus taxes and charges. This figure is expected to increase to 12.6 million the year after Christmas 2021.

The London Assembly vacated the building in 2021 and moved to the Crystal Building in the Royal Docks.

The move was first suggested as part of efforts to plug a nearly £500 million black hole in the capital's budget following the coronavirus pandemic.

Artist's impressions of the proposed north elevation of the building, viewed from the River Thames

The central grid on the north side should have a different design with plants covering the exterior areas.

The proposed southern elevation of the new London City Council building in Southwark

Artistic prints of the plans show some of the exterior finishes of the building, as well as some of the intended plans for the exterior appearance.

Proposals for surrounding land with soft landscaping and new living space

When the plans were confirmed, Khan said: My first priority will always be to protect funding for frontline services for Londoners.

Given our huge budget deficit and without the support we should be receiving from the government, I simply cannot justify staying in our current, expensive office when I could be investing that money in public transport, the Metropolitan Police and the London Fire Brigade.

The alternative to this measure would be to cut the frontline services that Londoners rely on.

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