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'Alien looking' Bexley Council development approved despite 'making a mockery' of affordable housing

Document Cited in Related
Vincent
Published date15 April 2024
Publication titleMyLondon (England)
The space is currently occupied by bushes and trees and sits opposite the Grade II listed former Erith Library. The new development will include communal rooftop terraces and an enhanced public plaza with space for a shop. The project will see the existing underpass that connects the site with Erith train station being repurposed into a cycle store

The project was approved at a planning committee meeting for Bexley Council on April 11. The plans had received objections from the Bexley Civic Society and London South East Colleges, who have a campus beside the site.

The Bexley Civic Society called the frontage of the building complex and described it as an ‘alien’ feature. They added that the scheme appeared to make a ‘mockery’ out of Government guidelines on affordable housing in London. Planning documents from Flanagan Lawrence, on behalf of BexleyCo, said an extensive series of meetings with stakeholders had taken place to inform the project’s design.

Lucy Morris, speaking on behalf of planning consultants Nexus Planning, said at the meeting on April 11: “The design, massing and materials palette have been carefully selected in consultation with council officers to provide a high quality design which responds to the site’s constraints.”

Council documents said an independent viability assessment of the scheme claimed no affordable housing could be delivered by the development. Labour Councillor Larry Ferguson said Labour councillors had previously raised concerns on the viability studies that claimed such developments were not...

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