Construction & Civil Engineering Magazine CCE Issue 211 | Page 43

for us when it opened last year , by giving us access to a wider pool of residential tenants and visitors . We ’ re also 45 minutes away from Heathrow Airport , meaning we appeal to more international travellers too .”
Alec reflects : “ In terms of construction , the hardest thing we ’ ve had to overcome is that we ’ re surrounded by water – everywhere you put a spade in the ground , there ’ s a water problem . The ground conditions are exceptionally difficult ; there ’ s canals , graving docks , and lock gates underground , and we even discovered an entire basement of an old factory unit on our North Quay site .”
While Canary Wharf Group ’ s initial challenge was attracting people to the area , it is now faced with the issue of maintaining and repurposing the estate to ensure its relevance to a 22nd century audience . “ It was always our intention to reinvent the site into a multi-use
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