A CONSTRUCTION milestone has been reached on a new 17-storey building currently being built near Reading Station.
On Monday, September 18, One Station Hill welcomed special guests for a topping out ceremony to celebrate the project’s progress.
It involved an evergreen tree branch being nailed to the structure, and a toast of ale.
Hector McAlpine, executive partner at Sir Robert McAlpine Construction said: “I’d like to recognise the entire team for their hard work and invaluable contributions.”
He also thanked the men and women working on One Station Hill itself, calling it a “high-profile building”.
The Station Hill project is being managed by Lincoln Property Company, which once complete will be made up of 1,300 apartments, 625,000 sq m of offices, and a new public area.
In March, the development company celebrated the topping out ceremony for the first phase, made up of 598 apartments.
Alex Aitchison, Lincoln Property Company UK managing director, looked forward to further development progress at Station Hill.
“We welcomed our first 60 residents living in the residential apartments on Friar Street,” he said.
“By the end of the year, that will be fully delivered with a bridge link over to this space, with two acres of public realm activated for the wider community.
“It’s very rare that we get to stand here and champion such a fantastic, game-changing development for Reading, for the Thames Valley.”
The mayor of Reading, Cllr Tony Page (Labour, Abbey), said he believes the finished project will help bring more people to Reading for work.
“We are now in a situation where inward investment into Reading, will I believe, continue apace,” he explained. “Twenty-five to 30 years ago, for every one person that came into Reading two went up to London – now it’s reversed.
“People are travelling to Reading for work purposes, perhaps not five days a week but still in larger numbers, and that process will continue, as Reading becomes the rightful capital of the Thames Valley.
“The only thing we’ve been denied by the government over the years, still a frustrating subject to me and my colleagues, is long overdue city status – we will not give up that desire.”
He thanked the companies behind One Station Hill, and reflected on previous hopes that the Station Hill development would be completed prior to the huge train station upgrade in 2015.
Construction work will continue on the exterior of the building, with the interior being fitted out by contractors Houston Cox.
The ceremony was also attended by Cllr Liz Terry (Labour, Coley) deputy council leader and Cllr Mohammed Ayub (Labour, Abbey).
