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planning report GLA/3329a/01 10 June 2019 5-9 Rockingham Street and 2-4 Tiverton Street in the London Borough of Southwark planning application no. 19/AP/0750 Strategic planning application stage 1 referral Town & Country Planning Act 1990 (as amended); Greater London Authority Acts 1999 and 2007; Town & Country Planning (Mayor of London) Order 2008. The proposal Demolition of existing buildings and erection of a 19 storey building with basement to provide 6,042 sq.m (GIA) of new commercial floor space and redevelopment of 3 railway arches to provide 340 sq.m of flexible commercial space (A1,B1,D1,D2) with associated cycle parking storage, waste/recycling stores and new public realm. The applicant The applicants are JH Rockingham Limited, and the architect is Collado Collins Architects. Strategic issues summary Principle of development: A commercial development resulting in 6,382 sq.m of new office and retail space in the Central Activities Zone (CAZ), Elephant and Castle District Town Centre and the Elephant and Castle Opportunity Area is strongly supported in accordance with Policies 2.10 and 2.11 of the London Plan and Policies SD4 and SD5 of the draft London Plan. Provision of flexible and affordable workspace for MSME’s must be provided and adequately secured by s106 agreement. (paragraphs 13-15) Urban Design and heritage: The layout, height, massing and scale are consistent with Policy 7.5 of the London Plan and Policies D1 & D2 of the draft London Plan. Resulting harm to the setting of adjacent heritage assets is less than substantial, and outweighed by the public benefits of the proposal in accordance with Policy 7.8 of the London Plan and HC1 of the draft London Plan. (paragraphs 16-24) Sustainable Development: Further revisions and information are required before the energy proposals can be considered acceptable and the carbon dioxide savings verified to comply with Policy 5.2 of the London Plan and Policy SI2 of the draft London Plan. Any shortfall in carbon reductions must be detailed and suitable contributions into the borough’s carbon offset fund secured by conditions and s106 obligations. (paragraphs 25-28) Transport: The parking provision satisfies Policy T6 of the draft London Plan. Electric Vehicle Charging Point must be secured through condition of approval and details confirming compliance of the design of the cycle storage facilities with the London Cycling Design Standards (LCDS) must be provided. Further information on trip generation is required. A revised Travel Plan must be submitted, secured, monitored and enforced through the s106 agreement. The Delivery and Servicing Plan (DSP) and Construction Logistics Plan must both be secured by condition of approval. (paragraphs 29-33) Recommendation That London Borough of Southwark be advised that the scheme does not comply with the London Plan for the reasons set out in paragraph 37 of this report; however the possible remedies set out in that paragraph could address these deficiencies. page 1 Context 1 On 2 April 2019, the Mayor of London received documents from Southwark Council notifying him of a planning application of potential strategic importance to develop the above site for the above uses. Under the provisions of The Town & Country Planning (Mayor of London) Order 2008, the Mayor will provide the Council with a statement setting out whether he considers that the application complies with the London Plan, and his reasons for taking that view. The Mayor may also provide other comments. This report sets out information for the Mayor’s use in deciding what decision to make. 2 The application is referable under Category 1C(c) of the of the Schedule to the 2008 Order: • 1C(c): “Development which comprises or includes a building more than 30 metres high and outside the city of London” 3 Once Southwark Council has resolved to determine the application, it is required to refer it back to the Mayor for his decision as to whether to direct refusal; take it over for his own determination; or allow the Council to determine it itself. 4 The Mayor of London’s statement on this case will be made available on the GLA website www.london.gov.uk. Site description 5 The site constitutes a small triangular parcel of land which is approximately 0.05 hectares in size and bounded by Rockingham Street to the south, Tiverton Street to the west and a railway viaduct on its north-eastern side. The site was previously occupied by a two-storey restaurant building, however this has recently been demolished. Also included within the site are a series of three vacant railway arches located beneath the viaduct. The immediate environs of the site encompass the Rockingham Estate, the Grade II Listed Metro Central Heights building and a Salvation Army office building. 6 The site is located in the Elephant and Castle Opportunity Area, approximately 200 metres to the north east of the Elephant and Castle northern roundabout. The site is located approximately 150 metres from the Bakerloo line entrance for Elephant & Castle underground station, and 250 metres from the Northern line entrance. It is also approximately 300 metres from Elephant & Castle railway station, which lies on the Thameslink route, offering services to London Blackfriars, City Thameslink, Farringdon and St. Pancras, north to Luton and St. Albans, and south to Wimbledon, Sutton and Sevenoaks. The northern roundabout is well served by buses. Newington Causeway, located 70m to the west of the site, forms parts of the Transport for London Road Network (TLRN). The application site records a very high public transport accessibility level (PTAL) of 6b on a scale of 0-6, where 6 is the highest. Details of the proposal 7 The application proposes the demolition of existing buildings and erection of a 19 storey building with basement to provide 6,042 sq.m (GIA) of new commercial floor space. The proposal also includes the redevelopment of 3 railway arches to provide 340 sq.m of flexible commercial space (A1,B1,D1,D2) with associated cycle parking storage, waste/recycling stores and new public realm. Case history 8 The scheme has been subject to pre-application advice, with an advice note (GLA3329a) issued in January 2019. page 2 9 A previous planning approval was granted on the site in 2014 (GLA ref: 3329, Southwark ref: 3/AP/3450) for the demolition of the existing buildings and the redevelopment of the site to provide a 13 storey building with 30 residential units and 373 sq.m restaurant (A3 use) at part basement/part ground floor level. This development was partially implemented through the demolition of the buildings on the site. Strategic planning issues and relevant policies and guidance 10 For the purposes of Section 38(6) of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004, the development plan in force for the area comprises the Southwark Core Strategy (2011), the Saved Southwark Plan Policies (2013) and the Southwark Adopted Policies Map (2016). 11 The following are also relevant material considerations: • The National Planning Policy Framework; • National Planning Practice Guidance; and • The draft London Plan (consultation draft August 2018, incorporating minor suggested changes) which should be taken into account on the basis explained in the NPPF. 12 The relevant strategic issues and corresponding policies are as follows: • Principle of development London Plan; • Urban Design London Plan; Shaping Neighbourhoods: Character and Context SPG;; • Sustainable development London Plan; Sustainable Design and Construction SPG; Mayor’s Climate Change Adaptation Strategy; Mayor’s Climate Change Mitigation and Energy Strategy; Mayor’s Water Strategy • Transport London Plan; Mayor’s Transport Strategy. Principle of development 13 The site is located in the Central Activities Zone (CAZ). Policies 2.10 and 2.11 of the London Plan and Policies SD4 and SD5 of the draft London Plan seek to strengthen the CAZ’s nationally and internationally significant office functions and the vitality and viability of retail offerings. The site is also situated within the Elephant and Castle District Town Centre and the Elephant and Castle Opportunity Area, which identifies the area as having an indicative capacity of providing 5,000 new jobs and a minimum of 5,000 new homes. These targets increase to 4,000 new homes and 10,000 new jobs in Policy SD1 and Figure 2.11 of the draft London Plan. 14 Given the above policy context, the principle of a commercial development resulting in the provision of 6,382 sq.m of new office and retail space is strongly supported. It is accepted that the small site area, close proximity to the elevated railway, and unusual shape of the site result in a constrained building floorplate which would not easily lend itself to any viable residential development on the site. 15 Policies E2 and E3 of the draft London Plan outline that all new office space over 2,500 sq.m should provide a portion of flexible workspace for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME’s). In particular, specific emphasis shall be placed on the provision of such affordable workspaces in the Central Activities Zone where cost pressures are likely to lead to future shortages of these spaces. It is considered that there is significant opportunity to accommodate flexible floorspace for MSME’s in the small floorplate of the commercial tower and the occupation of the adjacent railway arches. The applicant has stated that 10% of workspace within the main building and railway arches will be provided as affordable workspace, including all of the commercial or community uses within the arches page 3 which may provide workshops or studio (B1b and B1c) uses. The provision of flexible and affordable workspace for MSME’s is accepted and strongly encouraged.