planning report D&P/4056/01 7 August 2017 Land at Store Road, North Woolwich in the London Borough of Newham planning application no. 17/02106/FUL 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 Proposed development of 163 residential units (comprising 3 houses and 160 flats) up to 15 storeys; associated access, servicing, parking, amenity space and landscaping. The applicant The applicants are The Hyde Group and Galliford Try, and the architect is BPTW. Strategic issues summary Land use principle: high density residential development of this vacant site in the Royal Docks and Beckton Riverside Opportunity Area is strongly supported. (paragraphs 12-13) Affordable housing: no affordable housing is proposed without public subsidy, which is wholly unacceptable. GLA officers will therefore work with the Council to robustly scrutinise the viability assessment to ensure that the maximum reasonable contribution is secured. Early implementation and late stage review mechanisms should be secured through the S106 agreement, as required by the Mayor’s draft Affordable Housing & Viability SPG. (paragraph 15) Urban design and heritage: the approach to layout, height, massing and residential design is supported as part of this high density residential scheme, and there would be no harm to the setting of heritage assets. (paragraphs 19-22) Flood risk: the applicant should demonstrate how a suitable flood warning system will alert residents and investigate discharging surface water directly into the River Thames. (paragraph 24) Climate change: further information regarding overheating, the energy centre and renewable energy is required, and the final agreed energy strategy should be secured by the Council, along with S106 obligations for off-site mitigation. (paragraphs 25-26) Transport: the applicant should reduce car parking to 0.4 ratio. (paragraphs 27-30) Recommendation That Newham Council be advised that the application does not comply with the London Plan, for the reasons set out in paragraph 34 of this report. However, the resolution of those issues could lead to the application becoming compliant with the London Plan. page 1 Context 1 On 6 July 2017 the Mayor of London received documents from Newham 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 has until 16 August 2017 to 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 the following Categories of the Schedule to the Order 2008: • Category 1A: Development which comprises or includes the provision of more than 150 houses, flats, or houses and flats. • Category 1C: Development which comprises or includes the erection of a building more than 30 metres high and outside the City of London. 3 Once Newham 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 is a roughly rectangular vacant piece of land of approximately 0.38 hectares. The site is surrounded by similar underused/vacant brownfield land, part of which is in use as a Crossrail compound. The site is bound by Pier Road on its southern edge with the River Thames beyond, Store Road on its western edge, TfL highway land adjoining to the east and a Thames Water pumping station to the north. The wider residential neighbourhood extends further north, with the Thames Road and Standard Industrial Estates characterising the land to the west. 6 As well as being within the Royal Docks and Beckton Riverside Opportunity Area, the site also falls within the London City Airport Safeguarding Zone. It is also close to the northern access to the Woolwich foot tunnel and ferry providing links south of the river. A number of heritage assets are located close to the site, including the Grade II listed entrance to Woolwich Foot Tunnel and former North Woolwich railway station. 7 In terms of transport, King George V is the nearest station, on the Docklands Light Railway (DLR), approximately 550 metres walk to the north of the site, which provides a link to the London Underground Jubilee line at Canning Town and National Rail services at Woolwich Arsenal. There are bus stops adjacent to the site served by two routes – 473 and 474. Pier Road forms part of the Transport for London Road Network (TLRN) for its importance for the route to / from the Woolwich ferry. The site records a poor public transport accessibility level (PTAL) of 2 on a scale of 1-6, where 6 is the highest. Description of development 8 It is proposed to redevelop the site for a wholly residential development of 163 units. The scheme would comprise a perimeter block with two taller elements of 12 and 14 storeys linked by a 7 storey block fronting Store Road and 2 storey mews houses addressing the eastern boundary. Car page 2 parking would be concealed within a podium with a residential amenity courtyard above, with vehicle access from Store Road. Case history 9 There has been no history of referable planning applications on this site, but the scheme currently under consideration was the subject of pre-application discussions in September 2016 (D&P/4056). GLA officers supported the land use principles and the approach to design, mass and architecture, but requested further work on the ground floor layout, public realm, affordable housing, play space, energy, transport and inclusive access. Strategic planning issues and relevant policies and guidance 10 The relevant issues and corresponding policies are as follows: • Opportunity Areas London Plan; draft OAPF • Housing and affordable housing London Plan; Draft Affordable Housing & Viability SPG; Housing SPG; Providing for Children and Young People’s Play and Informal Recreation SPG; • Urban design and heritage London Plan; draft OAPF; Character and Context SPG; • Inclusive design London Plan; Accessible London: achieving an inclusive environment SPG; • Sustainable development London Plan; Sustainable Design and Construction SPG; • Transport and parking London Plan; Crossrail SPG 11 For the purposes of Section 38(6) of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004, the development plan in force for the area is the Newham Core Strategy (2012) and Detailed Sites and Policies DPD (2016), along with the 2016 London Plan (Consolidated with Alterations since 2011). Also relevant is the working draft Royal Docks & Beckton Riverside OAPF (2016). The National Planning Policy Framework and Technical Guide to the National Planning Policy Framework are also relevant material considerations. Land use principle 12 The site is located within the Royal Docks and Beckton Riverside Opportunity Area (OA) as designated by London Plan. The OA has an indicative capacity of 6,000 new jobs and a minimum of 11,000 new homes over the plan period to 2036. London Plan Policy 2.13 states that development in Opportunity Areas is expected to maximise residential and non-residential densities and to contain a mix of uses. London Plan Policy 3.3 seeks to increase London’s supply of housing and in doing so sets borough housing targets, of which Newham’s annual target is 1,994 additional homes per year between 2015 and 2025, which the proposals will contribute to. Newham’s Detailed Sites and Policies DPD allocates this site for housing. 13 As this is a vacant brownfield site with an allocation for housing within an OA, its redevelopment to provide a high density residential development is strongly supported in principle. Given the relatively remote location within walking distance of an existing small local centre, it is unlikely to be a viable location for retail or commercial uses. As such, a wholly residential scheme is considered to be an appropriate response and this is supported. page 3 Housing Housing mix 14 The proposed residential mix is set out in the below table. The scheme would prioritise affordable family housing, which is supported in line with London Plan Policy 3.8. unit type market sale affordable rent shared total % ownership studio 5 - - 5 3 1 bed 23 15 12 50 31 2 bed 53 7 - 60 37 3 bed 17 23 8 48 29 total 98 45 20 163 Affordable housing 15 The application proposes 65 affordable units, which is equivalent to 40% of the total number of units and 44% of the habitable rooms within the scheme. The tenure split is 70:30 in favour of affordable rent. The applicant has advised that this offer is contingent upon receiving grant funding and that the scheme would not be able to deliver any affordable housing without grant. Given the high density nature of the scheme on a vacant site with a low existing use value, the absence of any affordable housing without public subsidy is wholly unacceptable. The use of a market value assessment to generate a benchmark land value for the site is contrary to guidance in the Mayor’s draft SPG and is a significant concern. GLA officers will robustly interrogate the applicant’s viability assessment in conjunction with the Council to ensure that the maximum reasonable affordable housing contribution is secured.