Knight Frank gives backing to Henderson’s Smithfield Quarter
PROPERTY consultants Knight Frank have slammed the conservation group SAVE’s alternative proposal for Smithfield market as “economically unviable” ahead of the public inquiry into the future of the landmark site.
Its owner Henderson wants to turn the 150-year-old General Market – which has lain derelict for over twenty years – and the adjacent Fish Market and Red House cold store into a mix-used scheme with offices and shops.
However, SAVE and the Victorian Society have protested against Henderson’s £160m scheme to “gut” the site and have submitted their own alternative plans to restore the building.
In an independent report released yesterday ahead of the inquiry on 11 February, Knight Frank said SAVE’s proposed scheme would make a multi-million pound loss.