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Sunday, 5 June 2011

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Refurbished Lloyd's opens for business

The refurbished Lloyd's building was opened by Secretary, Ministry of Defence Gotabaya Rajapaksa at the invitation of Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) Ajith Nivard Cabraal, on Wednesday.

The CBSL purchased this historic building in 2009 with the intention of meeting its growing space requirements due to expansion of activities.

The building, constructed in 1908 was originally named Freudenberg Building. Designed by Architect E Skinner and constructed by Clifford Lake & Company, it is of late 19th century British architectural heritage.

The richly decorated conference room, elegant marble corridors, classical motifs, quaint woodwork and attractive exterior design of the building symbolise the commercial heydays of early 20th century Sri Lanka.

Initially, the main occupant of the building was Freudenberg & Co. and by 1917, several floors were leased out to Colombo Apothecaries Co. Ltd., Shanghai Life Insurance Co., Morrison & Bell, Standard Oil Company New York, C W Mackie & Co., Clark Young & Co., The Vacuum Oil Company and the Consul for the United States of America.

In 1933, the joint owners of the building, Walter Edward Moncrieff Peterson, Henry Seymour Jeaffreson, Basil Walter Cuthbert Leefe and Ian Woodford Aitkeen sold the building to Ceylon and General Properties Ltd.

In 1950, the ownership was transferred to Badrawathie Fernando Estates Ltd. and in 1957 to United Ceylon Insurance Co. Ltd who owned and managed the building as business premises till the CBSL purchased it in 2009.

Located among buildings neglected for 30 years without any major repair due to terrorist activity, the refurbished building signals the dawn of a new era, contributing to the government's effort in making Colombo one of the most attractive cities in Asia.

The building has five stories and a basement consisting of over 30,000-sq. ft. office space. In the course of the renovation, elevators, modern electrical, communication, fire alarm and air conditioning systems were added.

The CBSL believes that the renovation would encourage other building owners in Colombo City also to take measures to beautify their buildings.

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