Greenwich Council sold its Grade-II listed Borough Hall to the developer Lita Homes for £2.475 million, it has been revealed.
The full building went up in 1939 and was the headquarters for what was then the Metropolitan Borough of Greenwich for more than 20 years.
In 1965, the authority merged with Woolwich to form what Londoners know as the current council.
Part of the complex, including its clock tower, was already sold off as office blocks in the early 1970s.
But, up until now, Borough Building was still owned by the council – often used to host concerts and at one point leased to a local dance company.
It was sold in January, a council spokesperson confirmed in an announcement last Thursday afternoon.
The Greenwich Wire reports the council only made the revelation after journalists contacted them about it the morning before.
The council said: “We look forward to seeing the new lease of life that grade II listed Greenwich Borough Halls will have under its new owners, Greenwich Investments London Ltd.
“We hope that it will celebrate the building’s architectural heritage and bring wider benefits to the area. The Council's Cabinet agreed to sell it in October 2020.”
Greenwich Investments London Ltd is controlled by Xhevat Lita, the owner of Lita Homes.
It did not directly respond to concerns about the lack of public announcement, except to note that it “does not routinely make public announcements when an asset is sold”.
A spokesperson also pointed out that the property was “advertised publicly on the open market”.
The building was put on the market around four years ago, after plans to lease it to a theatre company fell through.
It was reportedly placed on an “at risk” register by the Theatre Trust in October 2022.
The National Advisory Public Body for Theatres had said the site would need “significant investment” to be brought back to use properly.
The building is the third Grade II-listed public building to be sold by the Labour-run council in the past nine years.
Others include the old Arches Leisure Centre on Trafalgar Road and the old East Greenwich Library on Woolwich Road.
