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Controversial and extremely unpopular plans to replace the former ITV studios with a monstrous office block on South Bank have been approved by Lambeth's planning applications committee, to local dismay.
The decision was passed despite over 260 formal objections and a 1387 strong online petition. Councillors Jennie Mosley, Kevin Craig and local Member of Parliament for Vauxhall, Florence Eshalomi strongly opposed the plans and asked Lambeth Council to listen to the concerns of the local community.
Although Councillors accepted the new office block would mean residents in neighbouring social housing will lose up to 63% of their daylight, they gave the green light to go ahead voting 6-1 in favour of the application from Mitsubishi and CO-RE. This was witnessed in the public gallery by local people in opposition. The result is deeply upsetting for tenants, who made direct heartfelt appeals to the Committee asking them to consider the impact of their family homes being cast into shadow. However, local campaigners are resolute to fight on and take their objections to London Mayor, Sadiq Khan.
As this is a key application, Lambeth Council will now refer this decision to Sadiq. The London Mayor's planning team will consider the application and make a 'Stage 2' report. Local people want the Mayor to 'call in' the application now.
Michael Ball, Waterloo Community Development Group (WCDG) said: “We are determined to fight this all the way. Lambeth councillors heard the misery this will cause to social housing tenants and heard from heavyweights like the National Theatre who spelled out the harm this will cause to the South Bank. They chose not to listen. Together we must stop this travesty and save this very special place, for locals and for all Londoners”.
David Hopkins, Director of Community, Coin Street Community Builders (CSCB) said: “Lambeth Council has let down local people with this decision. Ordinary Londoners - nurses, childcare workers, taxi drivers, teachers - face having their family homes blighted by this new office block. Our green and open spaces by the Thames will be harmed. These harms were acknowledged by Lambeth councillors but deemed “acceptable”. We firmly disagree and will continue to oppose plans for this ‘overbearing, bulky building”.
But Lambeth do not have the final say!
The application now goes to London Mayor, Sadiq Khan for his consideration, and he could overturn Lambeth’s decision.
There are many reasons why it should not have been approved as laid out by Vauxhall MP, Florence Eshalomi. You can read this at: https://florenceeshalomimp.com/2022/03/30/72-upper-ground/
Please encourage the Mayor to ‘call in’ this application and take the decision to refuse it. It is important he understands the strength of feeling and the huge numbers impacted negatively. But we need to act quickly.
You can do one or all of these TODAY:
Write to GLA Member Marina Ahmad and tell her why this decision is too important for London to be left to Lambeth’s flawed process and needs to be called in by the Mayor.
Write to Florence Eshalomi MP and tell her how you feel about the decision and ask her to do all within her power to ensure the site is not redeveloped to the detriment of residents and visitors alike.
Write to Sadiq Khan, London Mayor
To be kept up to date ensure that you sign and share the petition which we are preparing to present to the Mayor.
Save Our South Bank Action Group is made up of local residents from Iroko Co-op; Mulberry Co-op, Palm Co-op; Peabody Stamford Street Estate and Waterloo Community Development Group and Coin Street Community Builders among others.