Blaker Road Stratford, E15 2PY DESIGN & ACCESS STATEMENT roberts & treguer April 2015 roberts & treguer Contents 1.0 Executive Summary 5.0 Massing Studies 5.1 Building Mass 2.0 Introduction 5.2 Building Heights 2.1 Brief 2.2 Planning Policy 6.0 Views 2.3 Pre-Application Discussions 6.1 Daylight and Sunlight 2.4 Design Development 6.2 Views 2.5 Consultants 7.0 Access Proposals 3.0 The Site & Surrounding Area 7.1 Waste and Recycling Management 3.1 The Site 7.2 Servicing and Maintenance 3.2 Heritage Considerations 7.3 Emergency Access/Egress 3.2.1 The Bow Back Rivers 7.4 Cycle Storage 3.2.2 Historic Evolution of City Mill Lock 7.5 Crime and Security 3.2.3 Howards House 7.7 Inclusive Design 3.3 Surrounding Buildings 7.8 Pre-Construction Phase Plan 3.4 Site Context 3.4.1 Amenity 8.0 Conclusion 3.4.2 Density 3.4.3 Vehicular Approach and Transport Links 9.0 Appendix A 3.4.4 Archaeology 9.1 Newham Core Strategy Proposals Map 3.4.5 Ecology 9.2 Historical Lock Drawings 3.4.6 Flood Risk 9.3 Lifetime Homes Assessment 9.4 Community Consultation 4.0 Design Proposals 9.5 Lifecycle & Embodied Carbon 4.1 Key Design Considerations 9.6 Statutory Consultation and Letters of Support 4.1.1 Lock Island Archive 9.7 Inventory of Waterway Artefacts and Reclaimed Building Elements 4.1.2 PassivHaus Retrofit 4.2 Proposed Mix of Units 10.0 Appendix B 4.3 Drawings - as existing 10.1 Rights of Light 4.4 Drawings - as proposed 10.2 Ecology Survey 4.5 Materials 10.3 Transport Statement 4.6 Greenspaces 10.4 Heritage Supporting Statement 4.7 Code for Sustainable Homes 10.5 Flood Risk Assessment Howards House circa 1920 roberts & treguer 1.0 Executive Summary The proposed scheme for the City Mills Lock island seeks to restore the existing Lockkeepers Cottage, rebuild the house of Luke Howard (the famous Victorian Blaker Street chemist) in a location close to its original setting and construct a new warehouse from building elements in the Canal and Riverside Trust’s Archive. City Mill River Path Marshgate Business Estate City Mill Lock City Mill River The Lock Project Team Building Stratford High Street Applicant - Roberts and Treguer Ltd [contact: [email protected] or [email protected]] Architect - Roberts and Treguer Ltd Structural Engineer - Alan Baxters LLP Marine Engineer - Beckett Rankine Ltd Civil Engineer - Land & Water Location Plan Heritage and Design Adviser - Donald Insall Associates Ltd PassivHaus Designer - Studio Bark Ltd Landscape and Ecology - Gary Grant and Dusty Gedge Community Consultation - UCL Research Rights to Light - Rights to Light Consulting Ltd Highways Consultant - Phil Jones Associates Ltd Approved Inspector - MLM Ltd 1 2.0 Introduction 2.1 Brief 2.2 Planning Policy This document has been prepared to support the planning application for the The proposals have been developed in the context of the London Legacy works to develop the City Mill Lock island site around the existing Lock Keepers Development Corporation’s (LLDC) Local Plan, the Stratford Metropolitan Cottage. Masterplan (Development Framework February 2011), Newham’s Local Plan – the Core Strategy (adopted January 2012), the London Plan and with reference The proposed scheme has been developed through extensive research into to the Area Brief for Pudding Mill as part of the Legacy Masterplan Framework. the development of the City Mill Lock island and the Bow Backwaters from 1755 The proposals have also been viewed as part of the ‘critical mass’ described through to the Olympics and present day. On the back of this work we have in section 5.20 of Policy S2 that consists of Pudding Mill Lane, Sugar House managed to identify many historic features and buildings which once, and still Lane and Three Mills in the Lower Lee Valley. Throughout the report the relevant do, contributed to the waterways landscape; giving it vibrancy, interest and LLDC planning policies below have been highlighted to indicate where the helping to create a sense of place for all members of the community. scheme has addressed compliance, specifically in relation to: Our scheme seeks to build on these historic features and memories in BN1 Responding to Place three ways 1) by constructing a modern warehouse incorporating waterway BN2 Creating Distinctive waterway environments heritage elements including items from the Canal and Riverside Trust’s BN3 Maximising biodiversity Archive, 2) rebuilding the Howards house, a house once belonging to the BN4 Designing Residential Schemes Victorian chemists who invented the naming system for clouds, which was was BN5 Inclusive Design demolished in 1934 as part of the 1933 Flood Relief Act and 3) by restoring the BN12 Protecting archaeological interest the existing Lock Keepers Cottage that has been on the site since 1933. BN16 Preserving or enhancing heritage assets As part of the Island Archive the scheme also proposes to restore and relocate to Stratford other historic waterway artefacts - including a Harbourmaster’s Crane - with the help of the Canal and River Trust and Local History Groups. The Island will provide a range of highly sustainable residential accommodation to help meet Stratford’s growing urban population. All the homes on the Island will be developed to meet the PassivHaus standard, which represents a 92% improvement in the carbon footprint of the dwellings when compared to a typical home in the London area. Energy bills for these homes are anticipated to cost only £50-80 per year. Accommodation comprises Residential C3 accommodation with the restoration of the existing lock cottage and the formation of 7 new additional residential units. roberts & treguer 2.3 Pre-Application Discussions 2.4 Design Development A formal pre-application was made to the LLDC on 23rd December 2014, the The input from the following consultees has proved invaluable and many outcome of which is detailed below. changes have been proposed as a result: Prior to the pre-application the proposals had been discussed with Russell • LLDC Butchers, Area Planner for the Canal & River Trust, their third party works • Newham Council; highways, waste and recycling engineer and their estates and heritage officers during which no objections were • Environment Agency raised. The Head of Heritage at the Canal and River Trust also offered advice • Canal and River Trust regarding canal features for potential reclamation and re-use. Early consultation • Metropolitan Police with the Environment Agency’s Ben Llwellyn over the impact of the works on the • London Fire Brigade neighbouring flood defences was also undertaken and Katy Francis, the EA third party works engineer, confirmed that they had no objection to the proposals as it Below is a summary of the key design and amenity changes following the would be down to the CRT to maintain their neighbouring assets. original pre-application submission [ref: PREAPP 14/00058]: The pre-application submission gave us the opportunity to discuss the scheme 1. Foundation design to mitigate impacts on flood defences by construction of directly with the LLDC. On 5th February 2015 we met with the LLDC team: new raft slab and screw mini piles inset to allow 3m from all canal edges 2. Enhancement of the amenity space provisions for each unit to comply with • Hilary Wrenn, Senior Planning Development Manager the GLA Housing SPG • Steve Tomlinson, Senior Designer 3. Reduction in the number of new proposed units on the site from 8 new units • Allison DeMarco, Head of Development Management down to 7 new to be able to provide a better mix of accommodation and unit • Pippa Gueterbock, Senior Design & Physical Regeneration Manager sizes to comply with the GLA Housing SPG and internal space standards 4. Reduction on the massing on the rear elevation of the scheme in the central The meeting provided us with a series of action points that needed to be section and setting back the warehouse roof extensions from the edges. addressed, including design development and LLDC policy adherance, as well 5. Enhanced bin store 6 no. 360 litre bins including recycling and bulk storage as providing focus for our statutory consultation process. We convened again 6. Increased cycling provisions - 14 no. spaces on 12th February and 5th March to review progress. In addition we presented 7. Increased lighting provision, planting and active frontages to public areas to the scheme to the LLDC’s Quality Review Panel on 20th February 2015, the design out crime, whilst maintaining privacy between habitable rooms outcomes of which are outlined in 2.4 Design Development and they confirmed 8. Engagement with Newham History Society, UCL and Bishopgate Institute to that they were in support of the proposals and that the points raised ‘could be help facilitate the interpretation aspects of the proposals and to actively take dealt with in collaboration with the planning officers.’ part in the restoration of the Sharpness Dock Crane. Linking the proposals through to the River Lea Fat walk (now renamed ‘Leaway’) Additional pre-application discussions and meetings with the Principal Engineer 9. Public landscaping of the wasteland north of the site where we intend to for Highways and Traffic at Newham Council, the Waste and Disposal Reduction work in partnership with Keates Community Organic Growing for some Manager and the local Designing Out Crime Officer from the Metropolitan police raised allotment beds for children, thus opening up 347msq currently were undertaken. The positive outcomes are detailed within the Appendix. private space for public use 3 2.0 Introduction The architecture of the scheme has responded to the deisgn critique of the In early 2015, following on from further design discussions with the LLDC’s LLDC quality review panel in the following ways: Senior Designer, the following changes were agreed to further improve the scheme.