The Planning Committee of the London Borough of Richmond-Upon-Thames (LBRuT) has resolved to grant planning consent for the revised major mixed-use scheme on the former 22-acre Stag Brewery site in Mortlake, Southwest London. 

The site is adjacent to the Boat Race finishing line at Chiswick Bridge.

The revised application follows on from an earlier scheme that LBRuT approved, but following referral to the Greater London Authority (GLA) was turned down by Mayor Sadiq Khan despite a planning officer’s recommendation to approve.

The development, amongst the largest mixed-use schemes in South West London, is undertaken by Dartmouth Capital Partners on behalf of Reselton Properties, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Singapore-listed City Developments Limited (CDL).

The scheme consented by the London Borough of Richmond Upon Thames includes:

1. Over ten acres of publicly accessible open space providing multiple access routes for pedestrians and cyclists to reach the river bank.

2. 1068 new homes to be built across the site. These are a mix of private and affordable 1, 2, 3 and 4-bed homes. The affordable housing content is approximately 8 per cent of the residential content and is 80 per cent social rent tenure optimised for family use. All residential buildings will have access to underground parking.

3. A mix of uses creating a traditional commercial high street for the benefit of the surrounding Mortlake community that comprises some 20 to 30 units of shops, bars and restaurants, together with a hotel, cinema and rowing club.

4. Nine acres of green space with numerous squares, all with public access, provide the focus for the residential accommodation which surrounds them. A new green link connects the existing Mortlake Green with the River Thames.

5. A new secondary school Academy for 1,200 pupils together with a full-sized football pitch (also available for community use), as well as an indoor multi-use gym, play and sports space, to be constructed by Central Government.

6. 5,000 sq m of offices providing space for existing and new local small businesses.

7. An extensive package of road junction improvements at Chalkers Corner is designed to mitigate the proposed development’s additional trip generation, improve air quality for existing residents, and speed up the busy local road network.

8. The scheme has adopted a net gain biodiversity approach, including ecological enhancements such as providing bat and bird nesting boxes, using native tree species and biodiversity roofs.

9. This latest approved scheme has an Air Quality Positive rating.

Guy Duckworth, the Dartmouth director responsible for the Stag Brewery site, said: “This is the largest development in the London Borough of Richmond, and we have worked really hard to create a scheme that the borough will be proud of, designing both a multiple range of residential homes from our award-winning architects Squire & Partners and a mix of uses that will bring life to this part of Mortlake that has been cut-off from the Thames riverside for several centuries.”

Duckworth highlights the revisions made to the original scheme that address concerns shown by Richmond Council and the GLA. These include:

The scheme’s contribution to the affordable housing stock of Richmond is approximately 8 per cent of its total residential floor space. This level reflects that the developer has unilaterally offered to double the “maximum reasonable quantum” that the scheme should deliver as assessed formally by the Council’s valuers and viability analysts. Richmond Council’s desire for larger family-sized units and a tenure ratio of 80 per cent social rent units within the residential content has also been met by the developer within this latest approved scheme.

The architectural townscape of the scheme has been reduced from the earlier scheme, which was recommended by GLA officers but turned down by Mayor Khan because it was too tall in parts. That scheme included 1250 residential units, whereas the latest design approved by Richmond has a total residential content of 1068 units. The scheme has been assessed by Townscape design expert Chris Miele of Montagu Evans. It is regarded as being of the highest architectural standard in both design terms and in its ability to meet the Richmond Adopted Planning Design Brief.

The latest scheme has been redesigned to prevent the need for fossil fuel consumption to produce hot water or heating. All gas or oil-burning traditional boiler systems have been replaced within all parts of the proposed development with emission-free Air Source Electric Heat Pumps. Photovoltaic roof panels adorn the green rooftops in the whole proposed development. In addition, 40 per cent of the car spaces in the basement car park are designed for use by rechargeable electric vehicles and provision to extend this percentage to 100% as future demand dictates.

This latest scheme provides a new flood protection barrier for Mortlake, which meets Environment Agency forecast water levels and provides an elevated public walkway beside the River Thames which can be used when the existing towpath is flooded at high tide.

Murray Levinson of Squire & Partners, the architect for the projects, said: “We are absolutely delighted with the decision. Over the last three years, we have worked closely with the London Borough of Richmond’s planning department, the GLA and local residents’ community groups to create a scheme that will be a truly valuable addition to the local community and gives full public access to a beautiful and important section of the River Thames for the first time in more than 300 years.

“As a result of its generous mix of uses, the scheme enriches the wider area rather than delivering an independent housing estate disconnected from its existing context,” adds Squire.

Because of its size, the decision will have to be approved by the GLA under its Stage Two review.

The design was developed with input from the adopted 2011 London Borough of Richmond Upon Thames development brief for the site, along with national planning policy guidance.

 

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