Preston’s tallest office skyscraper goes on the market with a sky-high price tag

A commercial estate agent is inviting offers over £3.5m for the 15-storey skyscraper which, until this year, was home to the Department of Work and Pensions and HMRC.

Mr Rigby, who died suddenly in September 2020, bought the building in 2015 and within a year had announced £10m plans to convert it into a 105 unit aparthotel, together with a casino and a health spa and gym. But even though the council granted planning permission, the scheme never got off the ground.

The ground floor and basement were converted into a rented leisure space called Level, with a bowling alley, restaurant, sports bar and arcade. That business is ongoing and agents Duxburys Commercial have included it in the sale saying the Rigby family intend to agree a new 10-year lease at a rent of £100,000 a year once the property is sold.

The Guild Tower, aka the Guild Centre, was built in 1979 at the rear of the Guild Hall in Church Row and across from Preston's iconic bus station. It offers more than 70,000 sq ft of office space over 14 floors, with Level taking up a further 43,000 sq ft.

As long ago as December 2016, when plans to turn it into a hotel were first announced, it was described as "currently unloved and poorly used in the context of the surrounding buildings and public realm." A spokesman for the Rigby Group said: "We are committed to breathing new life into what had become a tired building."

The owners pledged to modernise the facade to bring it up to date. They also planned to provide some luxury suites on the top four floors. But since the hotel plan was put on ice very little appears to have been done to smarten up the appearance of the tower both outside and in.

Agents Duxburys say: "We are delighted to have been instructed to act on behalf of the vendors in relation to the sale of this prime tower building known as the ‘Guild Tower’ in the heart of Preston City Centre.

"The Guild Tower is an iconic building and this is a unique opportunity. The accommodation would suit various uses subject to planning permission."

When Simon Rigby bought the Guild Tower it was part of a growing portfolio of properties he was putting together in the city centre, including the Guild Hall, Fives in Guildhall Street and the old Odeon Cinema on Fishergate. He also tried to buy the bus station, but lost out to Lancashire County Council.

At the time he was seen very much as a saviour, buying up properties which had fallen on hard times and promising to renovate them to smarten up the city centre. But his companies suffered some major financial setbacks and by 2020 his empire appeared to be struggling.

At the time of his death he was embroiled in a bitter legal battle with the city council over the ownership of the Guild Hall after the authority repossessed the building at the dead of night and changed the locks. That battle has only recently been resolved.