The Station Hill development is an ongoing redevelopment project in
Reading
Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of symbols, often specifically those of a written language, by means of Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch.
For educators and researchers, reading is a multifacete ...
,
England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
. It occupies a site between Friar Street and Station Hill in the centre of Reading, and takes its name from the latter. It is a mixed development, with several apartment blocks aligned towards Friar Street, and (as yet) one office tower aligned towards the station. The development is linked together by Friar's Walk, an open air pedestrian walkway between the two streets that spans the intermediate Garrard Street on a bridge. At its Station Hill end, the development is adjacent to
Thames Tower and the
Reading railway station
Reading railway station is a major transport hub in the town of Reading, Berkshire, Reading in Berkshire, England, it is west of . It is sited on the northern edge of the town centre, near to the main retail and commercial areas and the River ...
.
As of 2025, the first phase (Friars Walk) has been completed, with the second phase nearing completion. The eventual development will comprise up to of office space, 1,300 private and affordable homes, of new lifestyle-led retail and leisure space, including potential for a 200-bed hotel and later living accommodation, and a central piazza.
History
Proposals
A redevelopment of the land, then occupied by the disused Friars Walk shopping centre, bus station and former
British Railways
British Railways (BR), which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was a state-owned company that operated most rail transport in Great Britain from 1948 to 1997. Originally a trading brand of the Railway Executive of the British Transport Commis ...
Western Tower offices, was initially proposed by Reading entrepreneur
John Madejski, who bought the site in 2005.
In 2012, the Station Hill project passed to a joint venture between Benson Elliot and
Stanhope. In February, they released a new
£400m plan to be displayed to the public.
After the exhibition at the
Town Hall
In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or municipal hall (in the Philippines) is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses the city o ...
, the developers said that the plans had received a positive response.
As of June 2018, Station Hill became a joint venture between Lincoln Property Company and MGT Investment Management (known as Lincoln MGT).
The BBC reported that the development was bought for close to
£70 million from Sackville Developments.
Construction
The development was split into three phases, with construction for the first two phases underway as of 2022 and the third having received outline planning permission. Phase one and two were completed in 2024 and opened to the public,
with the first three companies, PepsiCo, PWC
and Proactis Ltd opening offices in 2025.
References
External links
*
Capital Properties (UK) Ltd - asset management, placemaking and events
Buildings and structures in Reading, Berkshire
Proposed skyscrapers in England
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