valley house – The Charlton Champion

Valley House: So, whatever did happen to the big building site next to Sainsbury’s?

May 15, 2020May 15, 2020Darryl Chamberlain

Valley House in March: There wasn’t a lot happening two months ago…

It’s been the most puzzling development in Charlton since the last puzzling development. What on earth happened with the big building site next to Sainsbury’s?

You know the one. The one that’s had hoardings up for years that have forced cyclists to mix it with the HGVs. Plans for a nine-storey block were turfed out in 2015, a seven-storey block was approved a few months later.

At the time, the development was largely private. Work on 73 flats – 62 private, four for shared ownership and seven for social rent – began more than three years ago. They included 22 studio flats, 3 1-bed flats, 37 2-bed flats and 11 3-bedroom flats. Progress since then has been sluggish. Commuters who use Charlton station have, however, lost the view of Canary Wharf from Delafield Road.

Peabody render — “The queue to Sainsbury’s is only back to the bus stop, shall I get some milk?”

The housing association Peabody has taken over the scheme from developer London Green. Two months ago, just before lockdown – in fact, at the last planning meeting before everything ground to a halt – Greenwich Council gave permission for the scheme to be reconfigured. The biggest change was that the scheme was now becoming 100% “affordable” – in reality, this means there will be 54 flats for shared ownership and 19 flats for social rent. The 22 studio flats would become proper 1-bed flats, although a lift would be removed, the concierge would go, and the Breeam rating (a measure of energy use and sustainability) was downgraded from “excellent” to “very good”.

Valley House, Charlton — Scaffolding has come down in recent weeks

Since then, work has been going on – at a distance, of course. And this weekend, Peabody is launching the scheme to buyers. “So much to see. So much to do. So much to come. That’s what we love about Charlton. An area experiencing regeneration but already well served by shops and transport.” Oh heavens. “In the age of Uber Eats it might be all too tempting to order in to your sleek new pad, but you don’t have to stray far if you’d rather a night out. Within a few minutes walk dependable chains like Frankie & Benny’s and Nando’s rub shoulders with local favourites such as seafood restaurant Winkles, the riverside Chef House Kitchen and tempting Thai joint Cattleya.”

Winkles, the van outside the Anchor and Hope, will no doubt be delighted it’s been upgraded to “restaurant”.

Anyhow, should you fancy somewhere “located in Greenwich” (nope) or “located close by North Greenwich station” (good luck with that), you can check it out on the Peabody website.

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Seven up: Smaller Valley House scheme gets council go-ahead

April 8, 2016June 19, 2023Darryl Chamberlain1 Comment

Valley House render — The previous Valley House scheme was nine floors high, the new one is seven storeys

Greenwich Council’s planning board has backed plans for a seven-storey block of flats on Woolwich Road, six months after it threw out a request to build a nine-storey development.

Developers want to knock down Valley House – a former office block on the corner of Gallions Road – and replace it with 73 flats.

The approval, which came at a meeting on Tuesday evening, comes after months of wrangling over the development. Last June, councillors deferred a decision after objecting to a separate entrance for residents living in “affordable” housing in the scheme. Then in September, a revised proposal was rejected on the chair’s casting vote.

This time around, 10 objections were received, with the Charlton Society and Central Charlton Residents Association – which covers an area south of the railway line – commenting that the building was still too bulky. There were 80 letters of support, many of which used a generic text praising developer London Green’s scheme.

11 of the 73 flats are due to be “affordable”, including seven for social rent. Councillors placed a condition on the development that it be advertised domestically before it is promoted to foreign buyers.

Valley House: Greenwich councillors throw out nine-storey Charlton block

September 18, 2015September 18, 2015Darryl Chamberlain8 Comments

Greenwich Council’s planning board has thrown out plans for a nine-storey block of 74 flats on Woolwich Road – even after the developer agreed to remove the “poor doors” so residents of social and private housing shared the same entrance and facilities.

Councillors had demanded the scheme be deferred in July because of concerns about the “poor doors”, but at also because of the size and density of the development, which faces two-storey homes.

Concerns had been dismissed by council officers, who said in a report: “In an evolving area such as this, it is not practical or even reasonable to expect a developer to mirror the low density of the two-storey terraces on the southern side of Woolwich Road, as the opportunity to provide both market and affordable housing would be missed.”

But in a surprising decision, the nine-strong board dismissed the scheme. Four councillors – Ray Walker, Peter Brooks, Harry Singh and Mehboob Khan – backed the proposal. But four voted against and one, Angela Cornforth, abstained. As planning chair Mark James was one of those opposing the scheme.

Council leader Denise Hyland – the only London borough leader who sits on their council’s main planning committee – was absent due to an engagement elsewhere, as was regeneration cabinet member Danny Thorpe.

28 objections had been received for the scheme, which objector David Gayther called “the most important development here for years”. Residents’ groups had feared approval would set a precedent for the forthcoming new Charlton Riverside masterplan, which observers say is likely to feature demands for more tall buildings by the Thames.

Objectors were led by the Charlton Central Residents Association – whose area, which is south of the railway line, does not cover Valley House. Representative Anne Waite lambasted the lack of measures to deal with poor air quality in the area, saying “we’ve got rid of poor doors and replaced them with poor floors”.

Fellow resident Linda Waite picked holes in the planning document, highlighting a “sloppy use of cut and paste” which appeared to recommend councillors approve a completely separate application. She branded it a “pick and mix” of what recommendations from the masterplan were accepted and which were ignored.

Greenwich Conservation Group’s Philip Binns said there was no indication the developer had even considered reducing the height of the building.

But a representative of the developer denied the scheme “disrespected” loals, and said losing the top two floors would have a disproportionate impact on the number of “affordable” homes that could be provided – which was only 18.9%.

Eltham West councillor Ray Walker said he “couldn’t see the impact on existing residential amenity”, but chair Cllr James said he did not think the scheme conformed with the current Charlton Riverside masterplan. He joined Geoff Brighty, Christine Grice and Nuala Geary in voting down the proposal.

Two other controversial planning applications – one to replace the rear of Charlton Conservative Club with housing, the other the expansion of a care home on Victoria Way, go before a separate planning committee on Tuesday.

New Our Lady of Grace school approved for disused Highcombe playing field site

September 18, 2015September 18, 2015Darryl Chamberlain6 Comments

Developer Galliford Try’s image of the new Our Lady of Grace School on Highcombe

Plans to rebuild Our Lady of Grace primary school on a disused playing field in Highcombe were passed by Greenwich Council last night, despite a 100-signature petition signed by neighbours who oppose the development.

The scheme, passed unanimously by the nine councillors on the planning board, will see the Roman Catholic school move down the hill from its Charlton Road site to open space last used by the former St Austin’s comprehensive school and its successor, Christ The King sixth form college.

The school building was demolished when Christ the King moved to Lewisham in the early 1990s and was replaced with housing, but the playing field remained in church ownership and was left abandoned. The land and Highcombe itself have long been a blackspot for flytipping.

It will enable the school to double its intake to 420 pupils, at a time when primary school places are in high demand. Vehicles will enter via Highcombe – 18 staff parking spaces are being provided – with deliveries using Lime Kiln Close.

The new school could be open as early as September 2016 – a factor in councillors wanting to approve the application now instead of wanting to defer it to iron out issues with those who live near the site.

With a shortage of school places in Greenwich borough, planning chair Mark James said that as community open space can be used for education, “that is the overriding consideration” in the case. Councillors did call for a community garden to be included on the site.

Neighbours are concerned about increased car traffic on adjacent side roads as well as the loss of open space – the 1992 planning agreement for Lime Kiln Drive stated the site was to remain for recreation – with some calling for the school to be rebuilt on its existing site or at the Blackheath Bluecoat site on Old Dover Road. There are also concerns about a “multi-use games area” alongside the school.

Charlton ward councillor Gary Parker led objectors, saying the development would add to the “significant” amount of traffic caused by parents and staff driving to schools in the immediate area. He asked for the application to be deferred.

Martina Keating of the Charlton Central Residents’ Association – whose area doesn’t cover Highcombe – complained the group had not been invited to consultation events. She was also concerned about effects from building the school, adding that piling work at the Sainsbury’s site could be heard from Charlton Village.

Keating said the application had a “rosy view” of car parking – adding that most current Our Lady of Grace staff and pupils came by car. She was also concerned about claims that Victoria Way was a “quiet road” that was suitable for pupils to use to cycle to school, particularly with an increase in traffic caused by new superstore development.

Caroline Love of Charlton Community Gardens pointed out that her group was formed through unsuccessful negotiations with Southwark Diocese to use the land, lamenting the loss of potential for a “community-managed local park”

Local resident Richard Lovegrove, who presented a 100-strong petition from immediate neighbours, said the area would struggle to cope with traffic and branded the scheme a “dangerous, flawed proposal”. Another resident referred to a 1914 covenant on the land which he said meant the owners “must not cause noise or nuisance to neighbours”.

But a father of a child at Our Lady of Grace school, Mark Adams, said there was a “silent majority” in favour of the scheme, claiming most parents there did not drive.

Representatives of the scheme said it was impossible to rebuild the school on its current site due to the listed buildings next to it, and in any case they didn’t own the land there. They added that a scheme to hire out the playing field at “reasonable” rates had failed.

The current site of Our Lady of Grace is not included in the planning application. A previous application covering both sites failed in 2014 because of worries about housing planned for the land where the school sits now.

Valley House: ‘Poor doors’ lead to decision on controversial nine-storey block being deferred

June 3, 2015Darryl Chamberlain11 Comments

Greenwich councillors deferred a decision on controversial plans for a nine-storey block of flats on Woolwich Road at a meeting last night.

The Charlton Champion wasn’t at the meeting, but understands from those that were there that the decision to defer a decision was made because of plans to include “poor doors” – a separate entrance for residents living in the block’s “affordable” housing elements.

The block, at the junction of Gallions Road, is due to replace Valley House, a former council building and headquarters of Sykes Pumps, and sits opposite the Sainsbury’s/M&S development.

Just 18.9% of the accommodation was slated to be affordable, with all other residents able to use the building’s main entrance.

Three local groups – the Charlton Society, the Charlton Central Residents Association and the Greenwich Conservation Group – had objected to the building’s height.

From The Murky Depths puts the case for building high on the Woolwich Road here, as well as discussing a plan for more car parking on Bugsbys Way that was thrown out by councillors last week.

Look up – nine-storey tower planned for Woolwich Road

March 2, 2015June 19, 2023Darryl Chamberlain10 Comments

A CGI from architects Chassay & Last showing the view from the BP petrol station

Would you want to see this on Woolwich Road? Developers want to knock down a derelict office block on Woolwich Road, next to the new Sainsbury’s/M&S development, and build 74 new homes plus a retail unit on the site, crowned by a nine-storey tower.

The old office block – most recently called Valley House – has an odd history of its own – it was once Sykes House, home of Sykes Pumps; then it was taken over by Greenwich Council and renamed Guy Barnett House after the late local MP; but then that name was withdrawn when it had the bad luck of being the place where it tried administer the poll tax from. The council pulled out a few years ago; this website understands Metro Bank had been eyeing up the site for a branch, but that came to nothing.

valley_house_site01

So instead, it becomes the first concrete proposal for housing development north of the Woolwich Road since the Charlton Riverside Masterplan was produced. It looks smart enough from the renders, and London needs new homes, but is nine storeys too high for the Woolwich Road? The Charlton Society has voiced its disapproval*, you, however, may have a different view.

This has been going through planning for a while – it’s now at a “reconsultation” stage, and comments need to be with the council by 10 March. If you want to find out more, go here or enter 14/3258/F on Greenwich Council’s planning search.

(*Declaration of interest: I’m on the Charlton Society’s committee, but I’ve no strong view on this building.)