This page contains information about planning and other developments, and consultation exercises. I start with news of the two high profile Vauxall Cross devlopments before turning to other developments from Waterloo in the north through to Battersea Power Station in the west.
Mayor Ken Livingstone is personally strongly associated with the Greater London Authority's London Plan which designates Vauxhall as an "Opportunity Area" - that is a place "with potential for significant increase in density". In other words, high rise buildings are to be encouraged. The first Vauxhall Cross development was St George Wharf, the major apartment, hotel and office development by the Berkeley Homes/St George Group on the Effra Site by Vauxhall Cross and just upstream of Vauxhall Bridge.
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The same developer is now to build a 50 floor, 180 metre tower at the upstream end of the Effra site. (For comparison, Canada Tower at Canary Wharf is 237m high.) Above is an artist's impression of the view from Westminster Bridge. Lambeth Council refused to give planning permission, as did the planning inspector following a public inquiry. But Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott overruled them both and the tower is now certain to be built. |
Encouraged by Mr Presott's decision, London & Regional Properties are now planning a £350m development on the currently empty triangular site surrounded by billboards alongside the bus station at Vauxhall Cross. The artist's impression, above, shows the proposed two towers to the left of the proposed St George Tower. The company's proposal includes 400 homes, both private and affordable, 150,000 sq ft of offices and a 220 bed, four star business hotel. They will be seeking to build high. (One of the towers will be 46 storeys high - only 4 less than St George Tower - see above). This is necessary if they are to recoup the cost of the land - apparently the billboards generate an income of £1m pa!
The developers are anxious to get on and build as soon as possible and so are making impressive efforts to make the development attractive to the local community by promising:
A group of developers ("The Vauxhall Alliance") had their eyes on Spring Gardens - the large area of Council-owned open land just north east of Vauxhall Cross - and came up with a number of proposals for building on the land in return (they said) for making the whole area more attractive, releasing land nearby and so on. One project "Project Vauxhall" involved redeveloping the Ethelred and China Walk Estates. Local residents were opposed to this and all similar proposals, and Lambeth Council's latest plan says that:
Proximity to the river and Westminster, good transport links, and the possible availability of land near the river, has encouraged developers to plan and in some cases embark upon a number of ambitious developments. Starting from the north:-
Planning permission was granted in August 2007 for the development of a 144m residential tower block, a 25 metre 8 lane pool, fitness centre, dance studio etc, and 900 sq m of office and retail space, to be built between Upper Ground and Doon Street opposite the National Theatre.
Mayor Ken Livingstone has published a development framework which sets out a new vision for the area around Waterloo Station, including the arch-covered roads underneath the railway tracks. His aim is "To give Waterloo a new 'Town Square' that also serves as a public transport interchange space; to improve permeability to and within the area and provide new development principally in the area around and above Waterloo Station." Objectives include redeveloping and redefining Waterloo Station so that it becomes a new centre for the area; removing general traffic from Waterloo Road and giving priority to pedestrians, cyclists and public transport. Further details are at the Greater London Authority website.
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This five-sided eyesore at the south/east end of Westminster Bridge has been demolished and a 15 storey hotel is taking its place. In order to get planning permission, the developer has agreed to spend £3m improving the local environment. |
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Southwark Council have approved a major regeneration project around the Elephant. The aim is to create a traffic-free, 24 hour town centre that will include a mix of both social and private housing, shops, leisure opportunities etc. around a network of streets, lanes and spaces which will mean easy and safe access for pedestrians and shoppers. It is also planned to create a new civic square west of the railway; to develop social, leisure, cultural and educational facilities at the top of the Walworth Road and to refurbish St. Mary’s Churchyard to provide more leisure opportunities and green space. The civic square will include world-class landmark buildings, a new north/south bus route and a new link to the town centre east of the railway line. The top of the Walworth Road will be developed to provide a new library, a leisure and healthy eating centre, a museum and a training and resource centre. Pedestrian and public transport routes will link the area to the town and civic centres. The development will include four large towers, for which planning permission has already been give. The first, left, is to be built by Multiplex, the people who are building the new Wembley Stadium, in joint venture with Espalier. It will be a 147 metre, 42 storey residential tower on the Castle House site at the top of Walworth Road with 30 per cent affordable housing. The scheme will integrate wind turbines to bring energy costs down by 40 per cent for each of the 408 apartments. |
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Oakmayne Properties will develop the other three towers (left) which will incorporate a 214 room hotel, five screen arts cinema, 219 homes, restaurants, and shops, spilling out on to the market square. The scheme will offer new retail space for existing businesses trading at the Elephant. A greatly improved public transport system that allows easier access to the town centre and quicker connections to central and south London is key to the plans. It will involve improving entrances to the Bakerloo and Northern lines, a new bus only link through the new town centre, new bus stops, better access to Thameslink platforms, removal of the subway and a link to the new tram system. These changes will also allow better access to and from the town centre to key local destinations such as the Walworth Road, South Bank University and St. Mary’s Churchyard. They will also provide better connections between the Elephant and Castle, Waterloo Bridge and the West End. The Elephant and Castle roundabouts will be removed and traffic will be re-routed via Heygate Street which will ease congestion in the town centre. New cycle routes leading into the town centre will also be created. The London Park Hotel and the Fusion Leisure Centre are to be demolished and around 700 homes built in the area, including on St Mary's Churchyard. The project is being overseen by a consortium led by Sydney-based Lend Lease with local partners Oakmayne and First Base. They were appointed in July 2007 when it was estimated that the project would cost £1.5bn and take 10 years. |
The Walworth Project is a planned £1m makeover for the Walworth Road which currently manages to be simultaneously vibrant and scruffy. Local residents are currently being consulted about various ideas.
A developer has applied for permission to replace the petrol station with a 32 story office/retail development.
The Riverside Community Development Trust is mounting an ambitious programme to attract investment to the area bounded by Lambeth Road, Kennington Road, Kennington Lane and the River Thames. The trust in particular aims to:
(See top of this page)
Little more than a gleam in the eye of developers, this project would have opened up the area around the Nine Elms Lane, along and behind the riverside between the St George development and the Battersea Power Station development. It would include land currently occupied by the New Covent Garden Market, the Stationery Office, a number of mail/parcels businesses and others. This project might have gained momentum if Government Ministers had decided to close the New Covent Garden Market:-
Ancient laws require fresh produce to be sold in four separate London markets. Fish must be sold in Billingsgate Market - originally on Lower Thames St in the City but now in Docklands. Meat must be sold in Smithfield Market - still on its original site. And fruit and veg must be sold in Spitalfields - originally near Liverpool St Station but now in New Spitalfields in Leyton, North-east London - or in Covent Garden Market - originally north of the Strand but now in New Covent Garden in Vauxhall. The new Covent Garden Market went into severe decline as supermarkets etc. began to bypass it, but has since diversified. Click here and see the report mentioned below for more detailed histories of the New Covent Garden Market.
A report in November 2002 said that the four markets would not survive unless they became mixed markets and "one stop shops". The report recommended that central London should be served from New Covent Garden, but the Corporation of London (who own the other three markets) strongly disagreed and backed the New Spitalfields Market. It would not have been surprising if the Government had chosen to back Spitalfields in view of the development potential of the Vauxhall site and the consequent financial benefit for the UK taxpayer who would probably benefit if the Covent Garden Market Authority were to be wound up. But the Government decided to accept the recommendations of the 2002 report, thus beginning a legal battle with the Corporation which the Government won, in the House of Lords, in June 2006. So it looks as though the future of the New Covent Garden Market has been secured.
The empty campus on Wandsworth Road, opposite the end of Lansdowne Way, is likely to be converted into a large retail and residential complex, including restaurants, cafes and a theatre. Lambeth Council have given "in principle" approval, but a number of hurdles remain before the development (by London Urban Development Ltd) is certain to go ahead.
A Dublin-based company, Real Estates Opportunities, now own the Battersea Power Station, probably the largest city-centre brownfield site in Europe. They acquired the site from Parkview International, together with its associated outline planning permission, in November 2006.
Parkview had previously submitted a detailed planning application in July 2005, saying that they aimed to create 9,000 jobs and complete the scheme by 2009. Their plans included a tour, starting in the restored art deco control room and ending with a ride to to the top of a chimney. They said there would also be lots of shops, an exhibition area, two hotels, a theatre, a cinema and 750 new flats. Cynics, however, noted that there had been endless stories of plans to develop this famous site, but nothing ever seems to happen. They were also worried about Parkview's assertion that the four famous chimneys need to be demolished and rebuilt, because the internal steel reinforcement is corroded and beyond repair. The Battersea Power Station Community Group website will give you more details.
Further doubts were added in early 2006 when one of Parkview's proposed partners, Ballymore Properties, pulled out of the project. Parkview insisted that construction would still begin during the summer of 2006 - which it didn't - but instead applied in October 2006 for permission to build apartments and offices on a neighbouring site rather than reopen the power station first as a leisure complex. In the meantime, the company proposed merely to secure the “shell and core” of the building, including by fixing a plastic roof across the central boiler house, installing new structural steelwork and floors and rebuilding the chimneys. "The idea is to do as little as possible, protect the old building and get the housing on site,” said someone close to Parkview.
It remains to be seen what the new owners plan to do.
Work is underway on the Thames Strategy - Kew to Chelsea which is developing a comprehensive strategy for the River Thames between Kew and Chelsea, including Nine Elms on the South Bank. The aim is to create a continuing 100 year plan, that will ensure the river plays a full part in the economic, social and environmental life of London as a whole and the communities along its banks.
Plans are taking shape for improved sports facilities in Kennington Park, including a 25 metre, 5 lane swimming pool, a tennis bubble and a fitness centre. The next stage is public consultation and a planning application.
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The proposed Cross River Tram, once planned for 2011, is not now expected to be in operation before 2016. The line was intended to link Brixton and Peckham with Waterloo, the Aldwych, Euston, Kings Cross and Camden, via the Oval and Kennington. But the stretch north of Waterloo may not be built until 2020 at the earliest. For further details, see the Transport for London site |
