A judge has rejected a challenge to development plans for the Shell Centre on London’s South Bank, which he said will result in “a far more attractive set of buildings” on the site.
Collins J dismissed a claim by local activist George Turner, who sought to have the planning permission – granted by the communities secretary last year – quashed. He refused Turner permission to appeal, but it remains open to him to seek to persuade the court of appeal directly to allow him to renew his attack on the scheme put forward by Shell International Petroleum Company and Braeburn Estates, a developer jointly owned by Canary Wharf Group and Qatari Diar.
The judge said that the communities secretary’s planning inspector had concluded that the development constituted “high quality and therefore good design” and would make the Waterloo area better for residents, workers and visitors.
And he found: “I have no doubt that the inspector did not reach his decision on wrong principles nor does the claimant show that his ultimate conclusion was irrational.”
He added: “The proposed development would produce a far more attractive set of buildings than those which are to be demolished.”
The multi-million-pound project involves partial demolition of the Shell Centre and redevelopment with eight blocks arranged around the retained Shell Tower, varying in height between five and 37 storeys, and providing 218,146 m2 of floorspace comprising offices, retail and leisure uses, as well as up to 877 flats. The retained tower will be subject to external alterations to integrate it into the scheme.
However, representing himself at the high court, Mr Turner said that the permission raised issues of economic viability, procedural impropriety, and impact on open spaces and heritage assets.
But while the judge expressed “serious concerns” about the inspector’s conduct at a public inquiry into the proposal, which he said was “such as to give rise to a real concern that he was unfair to the objectors”, he dismissed a claim of apparent bias.
At the hearing in December, Collins J said that he drives past the existing Shell Centre every day, and that it was “about time” something was done about it.
Turner v Secretary of state for communities and local government Planning Court (Collins J) 16 December 2014
Claimant appeared in person
Daniel Kolinsky (instructed by the Treasury solicitor) for the first defendant
Douglas Edwards QC (instructed by solicitor to the London Borough of Lambeth and mayor of London) for the second and fourth defendants
Timothy Corner QC and Paul Brown QC (instructed by Hogan Lovells) for the third defendant
