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Commercial Property

NatWest Tower demolition breaks the bank

New images show old basement vaults which served NatWest through years of occupany in now-demolished office block

Demolition crews bringing down a 1970s Birmingham office tower have discovered the old banking vaults which served the building.

The former NatWest Tower, on the corner of Colmore Row and Newhall Street, has been razed to make way for a 26-storey replacement.

New images have now pulling apart the former vaults which served the NatWest for many years before the building ceased to have any occupiers in 2003.

Weighing more than a tonne, the vaults are constructed from 50-centimetre thick concrete walls and doors made from 25 centimetre steel.

Remains of old bank vaults at NatWest Tower

Work to demolish the 22-storey former bank building, which is being carried out by H Smith Engineering, started in 2015 and is due to be completed April.

The NatWest Tower will be replaced by a new £60 million office building called 103 Colmore Row in a project led by Rockspring Property Investment Managers and Sterling Property Ventures.

When finished, it will comprise 224,000 sq ft of grade A office space over 19 floors, plus 8,270 sq ft of leisure space, which includes a rooftop restaurant.

Peter Graham, construction director at Sterling Property Ventures, said: "We're reaching the final stages of the demolition programme.