Agenda item
Rodwell House, 100-106 Middlesex Street, London E1
Minutes:
Mr Michael Kiely, Head of Development Decisions, introduced the site and proposal for the demolition of existing buildings and redevelopment by the erection of buildings between 5 storeys (26 m) and 35 storeys (119 m) high for mixed use purposes comprising 32,458 sq m of student accommodation, 772 sq m of residential, and 8,825 sq m of offices (B1), shop (A1), and gymnasium, and 186 sq m of community uses, formation of associated car parking and highway access as well as hard and soft landscaping works at Rodwell House, 100-106 Middlesex Street, London E1.
Mr Mike Lowndes addressed the Committee on behalf of the residents objecting to the proposal on the grounds that there were omissions in the report and the reservations of the Greater London Authority (GLA) and Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE) had not been addressed. He also objected on the grounds of design, loss of light and the proximity of the proposal to the existing residential properties.
Mr Matthew Gibbs spoke on behalf of the applicant. He reminded the Committee that a previous planning application had already been approved for the site. He addressed the residents concerns relating to height and informed Members of the consultation which had taken place.
Councillor Phillip Briscoe addressed the Committee on behalf of the residents in the Spitalfields and Banglatown Ward. He expressed concern relating to the density of the proposal, the height being out of character and the area being designated in the draft Local Development Framework for office and retail, and not for residential uses.
Mr Stephen Irvine, Development Control Manager, presented the planning officer’s report. He addressed the concerns raised by the objectors and outlined the reasons for the officer’s recommendation of approval. It was recommended that four further conditions be added to any planning permission granted to mitigate the residents concerns. He detailed the differences between the proposal and the previously approved scheme and informed the Committee that there would be no loss of light. The application was inline with London Plan Policy and on balance was acceptable.
Concerns were raised by Members over the objections made by English Heritage and an apparent conflict with the emerging Local Development Framework (LDF) and the weight to be given to the LDF in their consideration of the application. Concerns were raised as to whether the site was suitable for a tall building and why the area hadn’t been included in the tall building cluster in the LDF. Mr Kiely explained the process of developing the LDF and that less weight should be given to it when it was only in a draft form and less than half way through the process.
However, after hearing the submissions and the presentations made by officers’ Members were still concerned and it was proposed that the application be deferred to enable Members to obtain advice from officers in respect of the weight which they should give to the draft LDF when considering planning applications.
The Committee AGREED that the item for the demolition of existing buildings and redevelopment by the erection of buildings between 5 storeys (26 m) and 35 storeys (119 m) high for mixed use purposes comprising 32,458 sq m of student accommodation, 772 sq m of residential, and 8,825 sq m of offices (B1), shop (A1), and gymnasium, and 186 sq m of community uses, formation of associated car parking and highway access as well as hard and soft landscaping works at Rodwell House, 100-106 Middlesex Street, London E1 be DEFERRED to enable Members to obtain further advice on the weight to be given to the emerging draft Local Development Framework.
Supporting documents: