New Quill++ proposal: shown to locals on Thursday last week

As we have long expected, Southwark Council’s ambitions for money-spinning tower blocks the length of St Thomas St were only half met by the absurd ‘Quill’ that everyone knew would never be built.  Having bestowed a £40m+ windfall on its anonymous, off-shore, tax-sheltered promoters they are now partnering second-round speculators, Greystar, with a bigger and better version of the proposal.  Only 500 student bedrooms was a bit restrained for Southwark so Greystar are offering them double that number, with the added attraction of 45 floors instead of the Quill’s modest 31.

But just so that locals don’t feel like everything around them is changing the ownership of the building stays in anonymous Jersey companies owned through nominee shareholders.  As their predecessors didn’t, It obviously wouldn’t be fair that poor Greystar should have to pay tax on the further £20m or so windfall the Council are straining at the leash to bestow upon them in exchange for the high-rise precedent they so crave.

‘Quill Mk1:  A bit discreet for the council and so only worth a tax-free £40m windfall

Following the 2010 planning consent for the fanciful nonsense that was ‘Quill’ Mk1 the site owners walked away with a massive lottery jackpot when they handed the baton to new chancers, Greystar. Greystar’s website boasts how they ‘leverage relationships into investment opportunities’.  They’re not wrong about how good an investment opportunity getting in bed with Southwark Council can be.

Land Registry title register entry as of April 2017 (when former anonymous Jersey-based owners passed the golden goose to new anonymous Jersey-based owners (Greystar?)