More homes coming to Nine Elms while plans for Prices Candles Factory on York Road rejected
By akadri | Sunday, January 29, 2012, 21:55
A planning application to create 456 new homes in the Nine Elms regeneration zone has been approved by Wandsworth Council.
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Plans for more homes in Nine Elms have been approved
The new Marco Polo House development would also provide more than 1,200 square metres of commercial space for new shops, cafes, restaurants and offices.
The site is located on Queenstown Road to the east of Battersea Park and is currently occupied by an office building.
A new pedestrian walkway would run through the development alongside a public garden, public courtyard and outdoor children's play areas.
Sixty-eight apartments will be made available to local first-time-buyer through a shared ownership scheme.
A total of 607 cycle parking spaces will be provided on the site and 141 car parking bays. Three spaces will be set aside for car club vehicles.
As part of a Section 106 legal agreement the developer will pay more than £12million towards local infrastructure upgrades including two new Northern Line stations and an expansion of the Barclays Cycle Hire Scheme.
Other contributions secured by the council include £252,000 towards the Nine Elms Local Employment initiative, £2.5million for affordable housing programmes in other parts of the regeneration area and £92,500 towards improvements to Battersea Park.
Wandsworth Council's planning chairman Cllr Nick Cuff said:
"This scheme would create hundreds of new homes and provide almost £12million towards improving local services and infrastructure.
"Nine Elms has begun to transform on an enormous scale. Building work is already underway on several major schemes and more planning applications will soon be coming forward.
"The Government's commitment to extending the Northern Line has reinforced investor confidence and it won't be too long before a new residential and business district has taken shape."
The redevelopment proposal was approved on Thursday 19 January by the council's planning applications committee.
The Nine Elms and Vauxhall opportunity area includes 450 acres of land between Battersea Park and Lambeth Bridge on the south bank of the Thames.
The London Plan anticipates up to 16,000 new homes and 25,000 new jobs will be created here as the area is redeveloped.
Work is now underway on major development schemes including St George's Vauxhall Tower scheme and St James Group's Riverlight development.
Enabling works are also underway on the site of the new US Embassy which is expected to open in Nine Elms in 2017.
The area also includes Battersea Power Station which has planning permission for more than 4,000 new homes and a new town centre development.
Other major schemes include:
• Parkside
• The Garden at New Covent Garden Market
• Sainsbury's Nine Elms
• Vauxhall Island
• Sky Gardens
• Hampton House
• 30-60 South Lambeth Road
• Black Prince Road
More redevelopment proposals have been unveiled recently including National Grid's plans for a mixed use scheme on the Battersea Gas Holders site. Find out more at www.wandsworth.gov.uk/nineelms
Meanwhile, plans to redevelop part of the Prices Candles Factory on York Road would not provide enough affordable housing, councillors have ruled.
The planning application committee also said the proposed building would be too bulky along the York Road frontage. The application was turned down on Thursday 19 January.
The proposal was to demolish most of the site's existing buildings to create 116 new homes, of which 17 would have been available through shared ownership.
New retail, office and industrial space were also part of the scheme.
Planning chairman Cllr Nick Cuff said:
"The number of homes set aside for shared ownership was too low. A wider package of community benefits was included in the application but it did not adequately compensate.
"This is a largely derelict site with clear potential for housing development but any new proposal that comes before this committee must offer a higher proportion of affordable homes and be of exceptional design quality."
To view the planning application visit www.wandsworth.gov.uk/planning - reference number 2011/2950.
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