Construction of a £350 million 168 metre tall mixed use development in the Vauxhall Nine Elms Battersea Opportunity area is planned to start next year after a new application for the controversial development was submitted by developer Citygrove and McLaren Property.
Planning consent is hoped for by May with demolition of existing buildings dating from 1865 this year and construction starting in 2015 for completion in 2018. Hundreds of construction jobs should be created as a result.
The new design is by architect KPF. A previous design by Make for a 149 metre ‘zig-zag shaped’ tower called New Bondway was vetoed by Communities Secretary Eric Pickles following a public inquiry in 2011. Lambeth Council planning officers had approved the scheme but the Planning Inspectorate said the site was not appropriate for a tall building; a lack of green space in the plans was also highlighted.
The development, in what is being called the Vauxhall ‘tall buildings cluster’, now has three elements – a 50 storey 168 metre residential tower which is taller than in the original proposal, an 82 metre 23 storey residential block, and a four storey offices block that will link the other two buildings and intersect the main tower. The smaller tower will contain affordable housing, some offices and a garden terrace on the roof.
Overall the scheme will provide 60,400 sq m of flats, offices and shops. There will be 450 flats, 3,700 sq m of offices and 1,000 sq m of shops. An indoor swimming pool and a gym will also be included.
Other towers in the ‘cluster’ include a 205 metre tall, £700 million development for Chinese company Dalian Wanda - billed as Europe’s tallest residential building - which will be topped by a luxury hotel, and two other towers of 168 metres, part of a £500 million scheme called Vauxhall Square.
Artists impression of new development: McLaren Property
