Housing secretary Robert Jenrick has dismissed appeals for two major schemes in Greenwich of a combined 1,575 homes.
In both instances Jenrick followed the inspectors’ recommendations, dismissing appeals for schemes previously rejected by Greenwich Council.
He has dismissed Meyer Homes’ development at Woolwich Central phases three and four, which had proposed 804 homes across four buildings. The application was originally lodged in 2017, but rejected by the council in January 2019.
Jenrick concluded that the benefits of the scheme are far outweighed by the harm to the significance of heritage assets. He also noted that the 27-storey tower of 206 homes in phase three would “dwarf anything around it and loom oppressively” over the nearby General Gordon Square.
The housing secretary has also rejected Rockwell’s plans for Charlton Riverside (pictured) comprising 771 homes at the VIP Industrial Estate and VIP Trading Estate.
A planning application submitted in 2016 proposed 11 buildings of two and 10 storeys, with 35% affordable housing. The developer had reduced building heights from 28 storeys, but the scheme was unanimously rejected by the committee in 2018, with one councillor claiming it “looked like Stalingrad”.
The housing secretary has recently come under fire having accepted “apparent bias” in his approval of Richard Desmond’s £1bn Isle of Dogs plans. Jenrick went against inspector recommendations and approved the 1,524-home development a day before a new CIL rate would see the developer face a £40m bill. He accepted his decision was unlawful when faced with a court demand to hand over all correspondence concerning the matter.
To send feedback, e-mail emma.rosser@egi.co.uk or tweet @EmmaARosser or @estatesgazette
