Developers face a contentious vote this week over plans to build a 14-storey tower within Whitechapel’s closely guarded conservation zone, after hundreds of objections poured in from heritage and community groups.
Malaysian company Alliance Property Asia wants to build a 280,000 sq ft office-led scheme on the playground of Canon Barnett Primary school at 101 Whitechapel High Street, E1, which is the beginning of the Whitechapel conservation area.
The Foster + Partners-designed development, being brought forward in partnership with South Street Asset Management and Henderson Park, would also involve demolishing two existing buildings on Whitechapel High Street and Commercial Road.
Following criticism at the scale of a 2018 scheme, the latest designs reduce the height of the building from 19 to 14 floors. They also involve retaining the Victorian facade on the site.
Tower Hamlets planning officers said the scheme was “finely balanced” but have recommended it for approval at a meeting tomorrow (14 December).
Panama-registered Alliance Property Asia has said the scheme will bring new public realm, new jobs and “a reduction in crime”.
The site will also target BREEAM Outstanding and WELL Platinum certifications, while the offices will incorporate affordable workspace and external terraces.
However, there have been 218 letters of objection and just six letters of support.
Among the objectors are the Victorian Society, the Spitalfields Trust, London and Middlesex Archaeological Society, Save Britain’s Heritage, the Spitalfields Neighbourhood Planning Forum and the East End Preservation Society.
EEPS’s objection says the scheme “has no regard for the history and fabric of Whitechapel, its current character nor its residents”.
The Spitalfields Trust says it would do “substantial harm to heritage assets, which will instead harm the amenity of a primary school… The application site is outside the Tall Building Zone, the boundaries of which have been drawn precisely and for good reason.”
Plans include a new playground for the school. However, a new school extension has been dropped from the plans. Canon Barnett Primary School did not object.
Last month it was confirmed that Henderson Park and South Street had agreed a funding deal for the £450m scheme. Nick Weber, founding partner of Henderson Park, called it “a significant opportunity”.
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