The £500 million mixed-use scheme will comprise one million square feet of offices and 550 homes. An initial 150,000 sq ft of office space will be built during the first phase of the development.
The scheme is part of a wider East Croydon masterplan promotion by Croydon Council which also includes adjoining areas around East Croydon Station.
Croydon Council granted outline planning consent for the scheme in July 2011. Stanhope has previously said it would not begin development of the offices without having secured an anchor tenant, however, it is now likely to be planning a speculative development, according to reports.
The development partners were granted £4m by local enterprise partnership Coast to Capital in April this year. The funding, which was part of the Government's Growing Places programme, was aimed to help unlock development on the scheme.
“Stanhope and Schroders have decided, given the recent award of LEP funding and the new Network Rail bridge at East Croydon Station, to start the process of briefing four architectural practices to come up with proposals for the design of an office building at Ruskin Square which could be developed on a speculative basis,” the development partners said.
If submitted, Croydon Council is expected to make a decision on the planning application early next year and work on the site is expected to start in 2013.
