East London Insights Q4 2019 - Planning & Development News

Posted by Strettons on 29th December 2019 -

Waltham Forest 

Town Hall Campus Plans Approved - Heart of Waltham Forest to be Transformed

The heart of Waltham Forest is set to be transformed following the plans put forward by Waltham Forest Council being approved by its Planning Committee. 

In what is being called a ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ project, the Town Hall Campus site on Forest Road, Walthamstow, is to benefit from significant investment to create a new neighbourhood in the heart of the borough. This is the largest change to the Town Hall and its campus since it opened in 1941 and will see much loved historic buildings refurbished, the future of the Assembly Hall preserved and protected and the area around the Town Hall opened up to the public.

The plans will see 500 new high-quality homes built with at least 50 per cent affordable prioritised for local people. There will also be a new civic office building and retail and leisure outlets for the local community and to attract visitors to the area.   

The Grade II listed Town Hall will be renovated considerately, and the building will be modernised to help the Council facilitate news ways of working and the delivery of services to residents. Outside the Town Hall, there will be a new water fountain complete with choreographed water jets, night-time illumination and a reflection pool. 

The work is expected to begin in mid-2020 and will be completed in spring/summer 2021. 

Commenting on the project, Councillor Simon Miller, Cabinet Member for Economic Growth and Housing Development said: “A project like this really does only happen once in a lifetime. Not since it opened in 1941 has the heart of our borough had such a transformation. It is not only an opportunity to build genuinely affordable homes   for residents but to create a whole new community around the historic Town Hall.”

30 New Flats to be built following Waltham Forest Council Land Purchase

Waltham Forest Council has agreed plans to purchase land at the junction between Osborne Grove and Palmerston Road, Walthamstow for £2.14 million. The purchase will pave the way for the development of 30 new flats, 50 per cent of which will be affordable, with a total estimated sales value of £12.94 million.

The council already owns most of the land in Osborne Mews, off Osborne Grove, which currently provides storage space to High Street market traders. It will now purchase the land it currently does not own, including one property valued at £675,000 to facilitate the development of the new flats. 

Redbridge

Tesco and Weston Homes Submit Plans for a 1,280-home scheme 

1,280 new homes could soon be delivered in Goodmayes as part of plans submitted to Redbridge Council by Essex based housebuilder Weston Homes and supermarket giant Tesco. Of the 1,280 homes, 35 per cent will be affordable, including social rent and shared ownership.

There will also be a number of discounted market sale units, with just over a quarter of these being three-bedroom family homes.

Tesco and Weston Homes amended their initial plans for the mixed-use scheme near Goodmayes railway station following in-depth consultation with more than 750 local residents and stakeholders. The revised plans saw the overall number of homes reduced from 1,400 and the height of various buildings reduced. There will also be a reduced number of parking bays, while 2,500 cycle bays will be provided.

If approved, the development will also feature a new Tesco store, a primary school, community hall, commercial space and eight acres of landscaped ground.

122 New High Rise Homes to be Delivered in Ilford

Following the approval of plans which will see the development of a 19-storey and a 10-storey block of flats within a car-free site which is part of the 122 new high rise homes that are to be built near to Ilford station. Existing buildings at 74-76 High Road will be demolished as part of the plans.

The 10-storey block of flats will be made up of 36 flats, while the 19 storey block will be made up of 86 flats. The development is part of a bigger “opportunity” site which would provide up to 251 homes and includes  Iceland and Halfords stores. The approval of this planning application provides half of that housing target.

The approved plans consist of a central courtyard between the two blocks of flats and both buildings will have access to a floor of children’s play space in the 10 storey block. The site has no parking, including no disabled parking spaces.

The project is expected to be completed by early 2023.

Newham 

£3bn Silvertown Scheme Turned Down by Newham Council

 

Newham Council has turned down Keystone and The Greater London Authority’s plans for a £3bn regeneration scheme in Silvertown.

The Thameside West scheme, which sits on a 40-acre site, was rejected for multiple reasons including the level of affordable housing proposed at the 5,000 home scheme. The report from Newham Council stated that “The applicant has failed to demonstrate that 32.5% (based on units), on-site affordable housing represents the maximum reasonable amount of such housing that can be delivered on the site on a viable basis.”

Other objections included the loss of industrial land, the likely environmental impact, the level of proposed infrastructure, the number of studio flats proposed, the scale of the development, the design of the scheme and how it links in with the rest of the community.

30 New Flats to be built following Waltham Forest Council Land Purchase

Work is underway on a 3,800-home development in West Ham. The scheme, which is being delivered by developers Berkeley and located on Stephenson Street, is being branded as Twelvetrees Park and will feature community, retail and commercial space. It will also include a 4.5-acre park.

As part of the scheme, a permanent home for the East London Science School will be built which will cater for up to 1,000 pupils. There will also be three new foot and road bridges with direct access to West Ham station.

Forty per cent of the homes will be affordable including those available for shared ownership. 

Speaking to the Newham Recorder, Mayor of Newham Rokhsana Fiaz, who visited the site to break ground, said: “The development is key to the regeneration of West Ham, delivering new homes alongside leisure and retail spaces and green parkland, as well as creating jobs for our community.”

“We want local people to get behind Newham’s regeneration push and come along on the journey with us – providing new community spaces and much-needed genuinely affordable homes will go some way to achieving our objective of people growing up here and staying here in our wonderful borough.”

It is estimated that 8,000 jobs will be created during the construction phase with 1,000 further employment opportunities once the site opens.

Work Begins on 78-Home Forest Gate Development

78-new homes are to be delivered in Forest Gate as part of a project between housebuilders Hill and Gateway Housing Association.

Work is now underway at The Earlham Grove scheme, located on a former brownfield site, and is expected to be completed in May 2021.

The site will feature nine homes for social rent with the rest available through shared ownership. Twenty of these will be one-bedroom, with 27 two-bedroom and 31 three-bedroom homes across the 0.5-hectare development. There will also be car parking facilities, landscaped communal gardens and cycle bays.

Newham Council Gives Green Light to 33-Storey Canning Town Resi' Tower

Newham Council has approved plans to build a 33-storey residential tower in Canning Town. Known as The Manor Road Masterplan, which will include 800 homes, the 33 storey tower is part of the first phase of the project and will include up to 355 homes, communal residential gardens, retail and workspace units.

The scheme is designed by EPR Architects and is masterminded by the English Cities Fund, a joint venture between Morgan Sindall’s developments arm, Muse, Homes England and finance giant Legal & General. Others working on the scheme include townscape and transport consultant WSP and landscape consultant Churchman.

Tower Hamlets

East End Council Housing Designs Revealed

Designs for a 17-home council housing development put forward by architects Henley Halebrown and backed by Tower Hamlets Council have been revealed.

The scheme in Norman Grove, Bow, which was approved in July, is made up of four townhouses and 13 flats for social rent to people on the council’s housing register. It forms part of the local authority’s wider commitment to deliver 2,000 new council homes by 2022.

The development of the site has involved the demolition of a former children’s home to make way for a two-storey building for children’s services, a four-storey building comprising 13 flats and the four houses. The children’s services building will resemble other houses on the street but be made larger by extending deeper into the plot and the new homes will range in size from one to four bedrooms, with two being wheelchair accessible.

Work is expected to start in early 2020.

Plans Approved for Whitechapel’s Bell Foundry

Tower Hamlets Council has approved plans to redevelop the historic bell foundry in Whitechapel where Big Ben was cast.

The council has given approval for proposals, submitted by Raycliff Whitechapel LLP, which will see the refurbishment of the Grade II listed foundry to create new workshops and a café, while an unlisted 1980’s extension in the rear will be demolished and replaced with a 103 room boutique hotel.

The Whitechapel Bell Foundry started in east London in 1570 and also made the Liberty Bell which hangs in Philadelphia. It is listed in the Guinness World Records as the oldest manufacturing firm in Britain.

A council report on the application said the plans would provide “long-term public access through the site” and Historic England said it would provide a “high degree” of heritage benefits.

Barking & Dagenham

Win-Win for Local Community as Plans for 56 Affordable Homes Approved

In what is being described as a “win-win” for the local community, 56 new affordable homes are to be developed on the site of a former Royal British Legion Hall in Dagenham.

Barking & Dagenham Council Leader Darren Rodwell said: “This is a good news story. The residents are pro the change. The properties built there will be there for time immemorial for residents who want to rent in our borough at truly affordable rates. This is a win-win for the community.”

As part of the plans, the 16 flats currently located at Jervis Court on Rectory Road in Dagenham will be replaced, with existing tenants and leaseholders promised help from the council to find alternative homes besides being offered the right to return.

The new development will mean that more people on the council’s housing waiting list would be allocated homes, with 35 of the 56 offered at below-market and 21 at London affordable rents.

3,000 Homes at Former Ford Assembly Plant a Step Closer

The Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has overruled Barking & Dagenham Council in a move which sees the second stage of plans to build 3,000 homes on the Beam Park estate move a step closer.

The site, which straddles the boroughs of Havering and Barking & Dagenham, is located on the former Ford assembly plant in Dagenham and Rainham. Second phase plans to build a further 330 dwellings at the site have been put forward for approval at a meeting of Havering’s strategic planning committee.

Despite the second stage of the development being on the Barking & Dagenham side of the estate, the developers' Countryside Properties and L&Q, still have to obtain permission from Havering council due to the scheme’s importance.

Beam Park’s future had been in doubt after Havering council rejected the plans, even though Barking & Dagenham had approved them. This saw the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, called in and he overruled Harvering’s decision which has led to the scheme progressing to the second stage. Havering Council’s chiefs have been urged to grant permission for the second stage.

If approved, a total of 330 new homes will be built, together with a new public leisure centre serving the Beam Park Community. The overall proposals for the estate include two new primary schools and nurseries, new community spaces and a Beam Park station operated by c2c.

514 Built to Rent Apartments to be Delivered in Barking

EcoWorld’s plans to deliver 514 build-to-rent apartments in phase two of Barking Wharf have been approved by Barking & Dagenham Council. Phase two of the development brings the total number of homes at Barking Wharf to 1,111. The first homes have been acquired by Invesco as part of a £400m deal split over barking and Kew Bridge.

The site will comprise five towers of between nine and 23 storeys and include 51 discount market rent homes, equating to 10% affordable housing.

Green Light for new Residential Estate in Barking

Barking & Dagenham Council has granted permission for the construction of 201 homes as part of the new Gascoigne Estate on Abbey Road in Barking. The scheme will be delivered by Wates Residential, a subsidiary of the construction and property group Wates.

The new estate will feature a children’s play area, electric car charging points, more than 360 new parking spaces for bicycles, solar panels and a Barking Town Centre District Heating Network. 60 per cent of the new homes will be classed as affordable housing.

Pat Hayes, the managing director of Be First, Barking & Dagenham’s regeneration organisation said: “Redeveloping the Gascoigne Estate is a major step in the regeneration of the borough. This decision paves the way for more quality homes which local people can afford.”

Construction of the scheme will commence in January 2020 with completion expected in spring 2022.

HACKNEY 

Kings Crescent Estate in Stoke Newington to be Redeveloped

Nearly 400 homes are to be built or refurbished on the Kings Crescent Estate in Stoke Newington after Hackney Council approved plans.

The development is part of Hackney Council’s award-winning regeneration programme and work is expected to begin in 2021 and be completed in 2023. The proposals were supported by the Kings Crescent Residents Steering Group.

In total, 219 homes are planned for construction and 174 are due to be upgraded. More than half will be for affordable social rent or shared ownership. 28 of the new homes will be new council homes and the rest will help to finance the development, with 75 homes for shared ownership and 116 for sale. Existing homes will benefit from new balconies and lobby entrances. There will also be improved public spaces and community facilities.

The first phase of the Kings Crescent project was completed in 2017 and received international recognition as a leading light in combating the housing crisis.

Dalston to Benefit from New Genuinely Affordable Workspace

Hackney Council has given its backing to the construction of new buildings in Gillett Square, Dalston, which will be used as genuinely affordable workspaces for small businesses.

The Dalston Works project by not for profit community interest company Hackney Cooperative Developments CIC (HCD) will create new low-cost spaces to help existing businesses stay in the area as part of the redevelopment of its current council-owned site in Bradbury Street.

The project is one of many initiatives by Hackney Council to provide more affordable workspace in the borough including converting underused estate garages, refurbishing old council buildings or putting in place strict planning rules about new developments in Hackney Wick.

The Council has agreed to loan HCD £200,000 towards the Gillett Square development and has also granted a 125-year lease on the land earlier in 2019.

Existing traders are being encouraged to move at a discounted rate to a neighbouring carpark while construction takes place and will then be offered new permanent spaces in the completed development.