9 November/10 November 2019 ★ FTWeekend 11
House Home
Aviva Investors and Galliard, which
includes a block of similar height and
two shorter towers, totalling 1,113units.
Similar proposals by Berkeley will
transform the light industrial area of
Malt Street.All pledge affordable hous-
ingquotasofabout40percent.
Thetowerswilltransformtheskyline,
Without the connections to the
national network of north London’s
Grand Union canal, the Grand Surrey
did not survive the end of the industrial
revolution and the rise of the car. In
nearby Burgess Park the “Bridge to
Nowhere” used to span the waterway.
The park was first conceived in thecMalt Street ,300 units, Berkeley 1
(2021-22)
cRuby Triangle1,152 units,
Avanton/A2 Dominion (2022)
cTown Centre/Cantium ,113 units, 1
Galliard/Aviva Investors (2024)
cSouthernwood Park 4 units 72
Strathclyde Pension Fund
(resolution to grant permission)
cCrimscott Street 06 units, 4
London Square (2020)
c596 Old Kent Road(Livesey
Place) 72 units, Shaviram (project 3
approved)
c6-12 Verney Road 0 units, 34
Argon Capital/CB Acquisition LDN
(project approved)
cBiscuit FactoryBermondsey
1,343 units, Grosvenor (City Hall to
make final decision)
c79-161 Ilderton Road 35 units, 3
Argon Capital (at planning stage)
c227-255 Ilderton Road 54 units, 2
Lathams (at planning stage)The big developments
redefining views north of the City. Gün-
ter Gassner, a lecturer at Cardiff Univer-
sity and author ofRuined Skylines, says
“tallbuildingswithhigh-endcondomin-
iums in central city locations seem to
celebrate urban inequalities and they
contribute to a sense of powerlessness”.
For campaigners, the current assur-
ances would not compensate for recent
demolition or redevelopment of nearby
councilestates.Onthewaterfront
Dating back to 1807, the four-mile
Grand Surrey Canal began at Greenland
Dock in Surrey Quays, crossed under
the Old Kent Road and forked off to
basins nearby. It brought coaland tim-
ber for the many yards along the canal.
DepotbuildingsonFrenshamStreetwill
be preserved by the new linear park
along the route. Peter Watts, a writer
and historian,says:“Linearparkssound
nice. The deeper irony is that now
canals have become desirable, these
flats would probably be worth loads
more if they were still overlooking the
oldcanal.”1940s when planners were adding
“green lungs” to the inner city.Today, it
is the site of barbecues for African com-
munities on Sundays and an award-
winningBMXtrack.
Southwark’s changing approach to
redevelopment was first seen in
the streets south of Old Kent Road,
with a linear park along the canal’s
Peckham spur and the regeneration
of estates.Where housing mixes with
industrial sites, the J Mills & Sonsbot-
tling plant built in 1895 has been saved
from demolition. Local business associ-
ationsestimatethereareabout100such
sitesthatneedprotectedstatus.
Five minutes’ walk from the Thames,
in Lewisham borough, anotherscheme
awaits approval. Lendlease’s Timber-
yard will add 1,132 homes. Thedevelop-
ment will continue the canal route’s
revivalwitha“rill”—alittlestream.
The channel’s next significant trace
lies under a railway bridge, where it
turned into what is now Surrey Canal
Road. The road is lower than the pave-
ments here, making it easy to imaginehow this stretch used to be a waterway.
After opposition from the public and
Millwall FC over an earlier project, the
“New Bermondsey” mixed-use scheme
isnowsettoprogress.
The western end ofthis road is the
focus of more Old Kent Road plans. ro-P
posed residential projects such as a
130-flat development by Aitch on Ilder-
ton Street will share pace with low-rises
churchesandgrassrootsenterprises.
Jessica Cargill Thompson, an urban
researcher and member of a commu-
nityengagementgroup,welcomesarec-
ognition of the value of industry in the
area but says it should be embraced
“with all its unattractive noise and dirt,
notjusttheheritageaspects”.
For all the concerns for the future of
Old Kent Road, Councillor Situ insists
the scheme will developthe right resi-
dential mix and “strong protections” for
business: “The council absolutely
refutes that the regeneration will result
in gentrification... the Old Kent Road
redevelopment will be unlike any other
development in London in the scale of
themixofusesthatwillbedelivered.”‘High-end condominiums
seem to celebrate urban
inequalities and contributeto a sense of powerlessness’
The Grand Surrey canal (1960) —Getty Images Adam Kossowski mural at the Civic Centre Alamy
NOVEMBER 9 2019 Section:Weekend Time: 11/20196/ - 17:31 User:elizabeth.robinson Page Name:RES11, Part,Page,Edition:RES, 11, 1