Loughborough House redevelopment – building the slums of tomorrow?
For the past six months construction work on Loughborough House, at 202 Coldharbour Lane, has amazed and horrified neighbours and passengers waiting on the platform for a train. The Italianate style of the building has now been all but lost in an insensitive redevelopment and extension of the building and its adjacent neighbour.
Firstly, there was the lax attitude by workers to health and safety, scenes reminiscent of the 1923 silent film “Safety Last” which has Harold Lloyd hanging precariously from a Skyscraper. Then parts of the façade were seen hanging dangerously over the street, resulting in complaints to Lambeth’s building control about the danger to pedestrians on Coldharbour Lane.
But all of these antics mask more mysterious sides to the application.
There was a scheme which received planning to convert the property in 2008 “07/04824/FUL Conversion of existing 4 flats to provide 7 self contained flats (1 x 1 bed 3 x 2 bed and 3 x 3 bed) involving the erection of a mansard roof extension and a hip to gable roof extension, the erection of a 3-storey rear extension to 204 Coldharbour Lane and alterations to doors and window.” This expired in 2011, yet the building work which has only been apparent for the last six months is according to the Lambeth enforcement team permissible as there is evidence that the works did commence on time – ie in 2011. This is the first mystery as there is no evidence available to the public.
The second mystery is that the scheme being built looks nothing like the original planning application.
Judge for yourselves but the current building has mean slit windows, and somehow contains seven flats of which six are family homes with no outside space, and no view, and of course, no affordable or social rented housing.
Does the local authority have any power to ensure that the slums of tomorrow are not being built today?
The Loughborough House redevelopment, 9 December 2014
The Loughborough House redevelopment, 9 December 2014
Loughborough House redevelopment – building the slums of tomorrow?
For the past six months construction work on Loughborough House, at 202 Coldharbour Lane, has amazed and horrified neighbours and passengers waiting on the platform for a train. The Italianate style of the building has now been all but lost in an insensitive redevelopment and extension of the building and its adjacent neighbour.
Firstly, there was the lax attitude by workers to health and safety, scenes reminiscent of the 1923 silent film “Safety Last” which has Harold Lloyd hanging precariously from a Skyscraper. Then parts of the façade were seen hanging dangerously over the street, resulting in complaints to Lambeth’s building control about the danger to pedestrians on Coldharbour Lane.
But all of these antics mask more mysterious sides to the application.
There was a scheme which received planning to convert the property in 2008 “07/04824/FUL Conversion of existing 4 flats to provide 7 self contained flats (1 x 1 bed 3 x 2 bed and 3 x 3 bed) involving the erection of a mansard roof extension and a hip to gable roof extension, the erection of a 3-storey rear extension to 204 Coldharbour Lane and alterations to doors and window.” This expired in 2011, yet the building work which has only been apparent for the last six months is according to the Lambeth enforcement team permissible as there is evidence that the works did commence on time – ie in 2011. This is the first mystery as there is no evidence available to the public.
The second mystery is that the scheme being built looks nothing like the original planning application.
Judge for yourselves but the current building has mean slit windows, and somehow contains seven flats of which six are family homes with no outside space, and no view, and of course, no affordable or social rented housing.
Does the local authority have any power to ensure that the slums of tomorrow are not being built today?
The Loughborough House redevelopment, 9 December 2014
The Loughborough House redevelopment, 9 December 2014
Loughborough House before work started