Category Archives: Planning

Community council gives £5k to anti-supersewer fighting fund

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At its meeting on Monday night Bermondsey & Rotherhithe Community Council agreed to contribute £5,000 to the Save Your Riverside campaign.

“We are currently raising money from the community for legal expenses and other expertise to help us put the best case possible  to the Planning Inspectorate against the use of Chambers Wharf as a drilling and reception site for the super sewer,” said Save Your Riverside in a statement this week.

“We have also secured the help of people in Wapping who will be greatly impacted by the noise of the work across the river.

“Some local residents have received notices from Thames Water about the probable necessity of altering their homes to mitigate the impact of noise and possibly moving them away from the community during the worst of times.

“People opposed to the use of Chambers Wharf have an opportunity for a preliminary talk with the Planning Inspectorate on 8 May in Southwark on the procedure of consultation.”

An all-day drop-in session at 160 Tooley Street will be followed by an evening presentation at Glaziers Hall.

Save Your Riverside will hold a public meeting at City Hall on Thursday 6 June at 7 pm, chaired by Val Shawcross AM and addressed by Labour and Lib Dem politicians.

News from the Albion Street Steering Group

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Watch this space for regular reports from the Albion Street Steering Group. Here’s the first:

A meeting of the Albion Street Steering Group took place on Wednesday 10 April 2013.

The ASSG is a group consisting of local representatives that was created by Southwark Council in April 2011 with a remit to influence the development of Albion Street in a way that reflects the needs and aspirations of the local community.

Any queries should be directed to the secretary to the group at [email protected].

British Land promises more and bigger stores as it takes full control of Surrey Quays Shopping Centre

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British Land has announced the purchase of its joint venture partner Tesco’s 50 per centholding in the 300,000 sq ft Surrey Quays Shopping Centre for £48 million.

As part of the deal Tesco has taken out a a new long-term lease on its store and the petrol station.

British Land says it intends to progress plans in 2014 (subject to planning) for a £38 million upgrade of the shopping centre which will include a 100,000 sq ft extension, the extensive refurbishment of the existing centre along with improvements to public spaces and connections to Surrey Quays and Canada Water tube and bus stations.

Charles Maudsley, head of retail at British Land said: “We intend to create a modern retail environment to attract the growing, affluent local catchment.  We are aiming to take the scheme beyond its current functional shop by broadening the tenant mix and introducing larger retail units alongside a more attractive food offer.  All this should increase overall spend.”

British Land has also recently bought  the Harmsworth Quays site from Daily Mail & General Trust.

David Dutton of DMGT said: “After many successful years at Harmsworth Quays, DMGT is delighted to be transferring its interests in the site over to British Land.  The redevelopment of our printing plant provides an exciting opportunity for the area and we are confident British Land is ideally placed to deliver what the area needs.” Cllr Fiona Colley, cabinet Member for regeneration at Southwark Council, said:

“Rotherhithe has seen some great improvements over the last few years including the new Canada Water library and better transport links thanks to the new London Overground service. We want to keep the momentum going by ensuring that land is put to really good use.

“In addition to new homes, the redevelopment of Harmsworth Quays has the potential to deliver the town centre and jobs that Rotherhithe really needs. I’m delighted that British Land have also agreed to work with the Council to explore whether we can build a new campus for Kings College London on the site, which is something I know would be welcomed locally.”

Simon Hughes: we must find super sewer alternatives that are “greener, more sustainable and more cost-effective”

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“It is not too late to have an alternative to a super-sewer down the middle of the Thames,” Simon Hughes MP told Parliament this week.

The current solution is to pour millions of tonnes of concrete into building a super-sewer through the Thames to intercept the outflows from the sewerage system. That will be very expensive, costing an average of £80 a year for all of Thames Water’s household customers, and it will be hugely disruptive. In my constituency, for example, one site might be worked on for up to seven years. In addition, this solution deals with only one problem. It will efficiently keep sewage out of the Thames, but it will do nothing else.

Other countries across the world are doing things differently now. Places such as Detroit and Philadelphia and places in Europe started to think about building tunnels but have realised that greener alternatives may be better. Instead of building a big tunnel, Philadelphia now has small interventions: much more porous surfaces on roads, drives and car parks; and smaller sewage collection tanks across the city, rather than in a central place. People in those places believe that what they call a blue-green solution is a better solution and it allows parks to flourish, with the transformation of the city into a wholly greener environment. Such a solution also produces many more jobs at the lower skill levels more quickly than one big tunnel project does. Philadelphia and London may not be the same, but Greater Philadelphia has a huge population, just as London does.

Read the speech in full.

Civic Trust Award for Canada Water Library – and a commendation for Dilston Grove

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Canada Water Library has received two prestigious awards in the space of a month: a 2013 EDGE Award in the physical category and a Civic Trust Award.

“We are thrilled to have won two notable awards,” said Cllr Veronica Ward, cabinet member for culture, leisure, sport, the Olympic Legacy and volunteering.

“The iconic building has been a resounding success and has helped renew excitement about libraries. The library has been seen over half a million visitors since opening, and is on course to hit the one million mark later on this year.”

“As well as being a stunning piece of architecture the library is also a great community asset, as these awards show. We plan to build on our successes and continue to deliver a library service in line with the needs of the local community.”

At this weekend’s Civic Trust Awards the library received the Selwyn Goldsmith Award for Universal Design.

The citation said:

This Civic Trust Award winning building is incredibly successful, managing to redefine the function of a traditional library into that of a hub which offers a multitude of services to the whole community. All facilities are thoughtfully designed and clever environmental systems have produced an environment that is imaginative, elegant and beautifully lit. Inventive approaches to providing universal accessibility have created a library, coffee bar, theatre, learning, study and administrative areas that have excellent functionality. The enthusiasm of the staff for their building and the users of all ages coexisting comfortably, show the effort made by the client to involve all groups in the brief. This has resulted in a welcoming civic facility that is clearly enjoyed and well used by all. Canada Water Library brings to the East End of London an iconic community asset that is an exemplar of Universal Design.

Canada Water Library is currently Southwark’s library of the month and is hosting a special programme of events during March.

At the Civic Trust Awards the Dilston Grove gallery in Southwark Park also received a commendation from the judges.

Harmsworth Quays: council lets Associated Newspapers transfer lease to British Land

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Southwark Council, which is the freeholder of most of the land at Harmsworth Quays, has agreed to permit Associated Newspapers to transfer its leases to British Land.

A dispute opened up last summer after British Land announced that it was buying the site from the newspaper firm.

When the council initially blocked the assignment of the lease to British Land, Associated Newspapers threatened legal action.

The council now says it has received further information and is prepared to agree to the transfer, thus preempting High Court action by Associated.

According to a briefing note from British Land published by the council:

The redevelopment of the Harmsworth Quay [sic] site provides and exciting and unique opportunity to truly revitalise this area of the Rotherhithe Peninsula. An opportunity we firmly believe can and should be taken. Ideally we would envisage a coordinated approach with the proposals for Harmsworth Quays integrated with the adjoining sites, including the Decathlon site, Aviva leisure site and The Surrey Quays Shopping Centre.

The move paves the way for talks between British Land, Southwark Council and King’s College London about the establishment of a new university campus on the site:

Having seen the proposals put forward by King’s College for the site, BL have met with their representatives to understand their requirements and potential benefits. BL are enthusiastic about the possibility of a university campus and advantages it would bring to the area including direct employment opportunities. The inclusion of this facility could also have spin off benefits with increased demand for commercial space for associated businesses including those catering to students as well as increased retail demand and expanding the day time economy.

The new campus would complement KCL’s plans for new student accommodation on the adjacent Mulberry Business Centre site.

* See all the papers on the Southwark Council website

41-storey tower on Decathlon site “simply too high”, say councillors

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2013-03-08 13.23

The six Lib Dem councillors for Rotherhithe and Surrey Docks have written a joint letter opposing plans by Sellar (developers of the Shard) to build a 41-storey tower on the site of the Decathlon store at Canada Water.

We believe that 41 storeys is simply too high, and not in keeping with either the local area or the delivery of the Canada Water Area Action Plan.

The area has already seen the development of a ‘landmark’ tower, as per the Area Action Plan, adjacent to Canada Water station.  The 41 storeys are also far above both the aim of the AAP to restrict development in the core area to between generally 5 to 8 storeys and the already secured planning permission for 10 storeys on site C.

Whilst we welcome high quality development in the area and an increase in both health facilities and open space, we have severe reservations about the proposed building heights, the transport sustainability of the plans, and the mooted quantum of on site affordable housing.

You can read the councillors’ letter in full here.

English Heritage has also raised objections to the proposed tower, warning that it will spoil the view of Tower Bridge when seen from London Bridge.

“Medium-high” risk of unexploded WWII bombs at Canada Water

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There is a “medium-high” risk from unexploded World War II  bombs in the redevelopment of the Mulberry Business Centre at Canada Water, according to a threat assessment submitted to Southwark Council.

King’s College London will next week hold a public exhibition of its plans to build new student accommodation, offices and housing on the site opposite Alfred Salter Primary School.

An Explosive Ordnance Threat Assessment carried out last year by BACTEC International has been submitted to Southwark Council.

The report notes that the site – which was alongside the now-infilled Quebec Dock – was bombed several times during World War II as part of wider Luftwaffe attacks on the Surrey Commercial Docks. During the war the site was occupied by a series of timber sheds which had all been demolished by 1946.

According to the assessment, a 500kg bomb would have had a maximum bomb penetration depth of up to 10 metres below WWII ground level.

BACTEC recommends that all workers carrying out excavations on the site should be briefed on the possibility of finding unexploded ordinance. It also recommends that a bomb disposal engineer should be on-site to supervise all open excavations.


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Albion Street rejuvenation moves forward

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Last month Southwark Council’s cabinet agreed to the next stage of work towards the rejuvenation of Albion Street.

The council says it will work with local residents on the Albion Street Regeneration Framework which will have four main strands.

The next stages include proposals to expand Albion Primary School, further consultation with residents on the Albion Estate to see how they can benefit from wider regeneration, ensuring that the redevelopment of the former Rotherhithe Library on Albion Street supports the hopes of local people and enhancing public spaces in the area.

Cllr Fiona Colley, cabinet member for regeneration and corporate strategy said: “Albion Street was once a lively and successful area – home to a popular street market and at the heart of the Rotherhithe community.

“Despite the tremendous changes we have seen in the Rotherhithe and Canada Water area, Albion Street area has not really felt the benefits.

“We are fortunate that there is a lot of enthusiasm and many great ideas coming forward from local tenants, residents, councillors, businesses and groups such as the Scandinavian churches. We want to make sure that there is a role for all local representatives to get involved in improving the area.”