An
unprecedented construction boom is set to strike Shoredtich in the next few
years, transforming (perhaps beyond repair) our beloved neighbourhood.
That
concerns Alternative London, deeply.
On
Shoreditch High Street alone, there are five such exclusive residential and
retail developments under the Hackney and Tower Hamlets Councils, which are
planned to populate the area in the very near future, subject to legal
conditions.
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| All photos by Jason Di-Candilo @billthebadger |
Here’s a snap-shot of what’s to come and what’s already under way:
Principal Place: A 50-storey
tower with 243 apartments, and a 15-storey office complex developed by US-based
Brookfield and Canada’s Concord Pacific to sit adjacent to the Broadgate Tower,
on the corner of Worship Street and Shoreditch High Street.
Avant Garde: A 74 metre tower was recently completed by Telford
Homes on Bethnal Green Road with 257 apartments (with a £3 million penthouse).
Shoreditch Village: Homes, offices, retail, shops and a market will soon
exist in the old car park at the back of the Village Underground (the famous
Shoreditch venue with the two old tube carriages on the roof) and be called
Shoreditch Village.
The Stage: 385 homes
as well as retail and business units will be built over
the foundations of one of London’s earliest theatres (where Romeo and Juliet
was probably first staged some reports rumour). Plans reveal that the
archaeological remains will be preserved and incorporated into a visitor centre
and small theatre.
The Goodsyard: This is the
largest development of all by Hammerson and Ballymore, which is proposed at the site of the former
Bishopsgate goodsyard. It will add 3.7 sq ft of residential, retail and office
space including up to 2,000 new homes.
Norton Folgate: The
two acre area from Blossom Street to Fleur de Lis Street and the the Elder Street
Conservation area was established in 1977 to block an attempt to destroy a
street of houses dating back to the 1720s. Now it could be demolished and
turned into office space, shops and 40 apartments under plans lodged by
British Land.
This grand scale gentrification has been
nick named the ‘Canary Wharf-isation’ of Shoreditch because before long – if
plans persist – Shoreditch will become another Canary Wharf; a hub of grey and
sterile residential properties and high-rises.
In fact, collectively these five
developments will account for 3,051 new residential units across 5.5m sq ft of
new residential, retail and office space, according to the Londonist.
Conversely, the Olympics East Village (the
former Athlete’s Village) is a residential development with a total of 2,800
units.
This is just how BIG these developments
are.
What
will that do to the Shoreditch
we know and adore?
And
when you thought London had enough skyscrapers, these developments will add
more. The Goodsyard, if approved, will have four towers of more than 30 storeys
and a fifth with more than 20 storeys. Opposite will be the Principal Place
residential development standing at 50 storeys and not far away, The Stage at 40
storeys.
According to Andrew Harris, Urban
Studies lead at the University College London, said: “I always thought the
greatest transformation [in Shoreditch] happened in the late 90s. It’s
incredible to think the momentum hasn’t stopped since. What we’re seeing now
[in Shoreditch] is development on a much bigger scale.”
Shoreditch
has always been subject to great change. During the 16th century,
Shoreditch was home to wealthy bankers and diplomats who
worked in the city. Then in the 1980s, there was a widespread de-industrialisation
of inner London turning Shoreditch into a site for light industry. In the
1990s, vacant Victorian warehouses and industrial spaces (a byproduct of over
de-industrialisation) brought artists, fashion designers and other creatives to
the area because of the cheap rent.
It
has maintained this reputation since.
It
is hipster central and collectively, great things are born from innovative
communities such as Shoreditch including pop-up restaurants, social campaigns, unconventional
exhibitions, wholesome food markets and creative spaces (with arguably the best
coffee).
Mr Harris suggests Shoreditch may be going full circle: “[Shoreditch] was an upmarket suburb for people to live
close by the City of London. In some respects, it’s returning to its
pre-industrial role,” he says.
For more information, visit The end of street: Questionable‘development’ for the East End as part of this blog series.
Call to Action
If you are just as
alarmed of these plans for Shoreditch, join the Skyline Campaign.
On March 29, 2014,
a joint statement expressing concern about the London skyline was
signed by more than 70 public figures including sculptor Anothony Gormley,
presenter Griff Rhys Jones and Royal Academy’s Charles Saumarez Smith.
Will you add your name?
Boris Johnson, London’s
Mayor, is sitting in the power seat and could potentially stop these
developments in their tracks. Send him an email or letter, and make this issue
the top of his priorities:
Boris
Johnson
Mayor of
London
Greater
London Authority
London SE1
2AA
Telephone:
020 7983 4100
Fax: 020
7983 4057
Email: mayor@london.gov.uk
We would love to hear from you.
How do you feel about these planned developments? How
can we make a difference?
Share your thoughts in the comment box
below.
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Leah Davies is a purpose-filled writer, human rights activist and coach
for budding wordsmiths, who is driven to cultivate change through our stories.
Her social business Paper Planes Connect is a place to celebrate our difference and to unite in
our sameness. Using her experience as a journalist and international
development worker, she supports the social conscious to platform their voice
and create change, both big and small.
Email: leah@paperplanesconnect.com
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