New plans revealed to build 50-storey tower in Croydon
Ian Austen
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NO MORE: The original Menta plans for four towers have been discarded
FOLLOWING a massive rethink, radical plans for redeveloping a major part of East Croydon have left the drawing board.
And this time Craig Marks, boss of developer Menta, is hopeful his new proposals will go a long way towards placating local opposition and giving regeneration a shot in the arm.
Menta caused uproar after proposing a development, comprising mainly housing, including four tower blocks, one of which would have been 45 storeys high.
And while the new £250 million scheme still contains a landmark 50-plus-storey block, the other three large towers have disappeared.
Mr Marks withdrew the initial proposals a year ago on the day they were due to be considered by Croydon's planning committee.
He wants a less controversial new scheme.
In the last fortnight Menta has been testing the water, through two public consultation exercises and a presentation to the council's strategic planning committee.
Mr Marks says the initial reaction has been considerably more positive, although he accepts concerns about the height of the main tower – which would be between 160 and 180 metres tall – remain.
The overall scheme, which encompasses an area around Cherry Orchard Road, Cherry Orchard Gardens and Billinton Hill, envisages providing around 500 one, two and three-bedroom apartments.
They would be spread between the main tower block and an up to 14-storey building on the site of vacant former council flats in Cherry Orchard Gardens.
Also included is a 180-room hotel – a new element to the scheme – a gym, restaurants, shops, community facilities and open space.
A key element will also be an extension of a bridge which is part of the masterplan for regenerating East Croydon.
The bridge, which would link East Croydon station to Lansdowne Road, would, under his scheme – Mr Marks promises – be extended to provide a new link for Addiscombe residents to both the station and the town centre.
He said: "The original scheme was ambitious, perhaps a bit over-ambitious.
"I was beguiled by the possibilities for Croydon's future and I remain beguiled by them."
Mr Marks believes the new proposals have dealt with local objectors' fears that a "wall of development and monolithic mass" would have been created by the original four towers.
Menta will look hard at the responses from the initial consultations to submit a planning application around Christmas.
If planning permission is granted work could start in 2012 and take four years to complete.
What do you think of the new proposals? Write to Letters, Croydon Advertiser, 3rd Floor, Jessop House, 100 Tamworth Road, Croydon, CR0 1XX or e-mail newsdesk@croydonadvertiser.co.uk
3 Comments
by Matthew Plumley, Cedar Road, Croydon
Monday, August 23 2010, 10:03AM
“"Mr Marks says the initial reaction has been considerably more positive"
Utter PR mumbo jumbo, I went to the consultations and everyone I spoke to was against this new scheme.
It's such a pity that this capitalist developer is yet again trying to force feed a vision on our local area that no body wants or needs.
I remember speaking to a PR consultant at the meeting and enquired as to why the main building had to be so tall. Apparently if the buildings were shorter they would need more ground space !!**!? In other words they clearly need to maximise their cash potential from this scheme regardless of the impact on the local neigbourhood.
There were many reasons why I think this should not happen.
1/ 50 storey buildng right next to a residential area of two storey houses, can you imagine how out of place this building will look.
2/ The impact of on local services, no mention of provision of extra GP, Dentist
3/ Parking, there's not enough parking spaces for each flat, that's assuming each flat has one car. It can be bad enough parking outside my house now, but I expect it will be impossible with the new influx of residents, visitors and workers.
4/ I really like where I live now and have rarely witnessed or heard of any crime in this area. This is more likely to change.
5/ There's enough tall buildings in the area overlooking our back gardens, the last thing I want is a 50 storey tower block peering into my back garden.
6/ The Porter and Sorter is an instituion and part of our heritage, good local pubs are under threat already. This should be kept, rather replaced by a hotel and no doubt another slug and lettuce type bar.
7/ The buildings in Cherry Orchard road that are ear marked to be demolished, they are high quality buildings and fit in well with the area. They could be renovated to make luxury flats.
I am 100% behind well thought out high quality developments in the area, but we need a scheme that fits in with the area not one that is out of place and cleary designed to maximise profits.
You might also be iterested in this
article another PR joke
"Hostility has waned" is says, I thinik NOT
http://www.thisiscroydontoday.co.uk/addiscombe/Hostility-waned-new-plans-pipeline/article-2446112-detail/article.html”
by Brian Taylor, Blake Rd resident
Thursday, July 29 2010, 5:45PM
“One question which has not been answered and applies to the new scheme as much as the old scheme is traffic planning/management. Without the scheme the NLA 'roundabout' and major junction where tramlink crosses Cherry Orchard Rd is already a nightmare and has been ever since the tramlink was built. Although the pedestrian crossing has been improved many local people avoid this junction in vehicles by travelling via Cedar Rd into Colson or Blake Rds, to Addiscombe Rd and then into Park Hill Rd to the roundabout thereby avoiding not just the tram crossing, but the traffic lights at each end of Addiscombe Grove. From the other direction traffic turns off Addiscombe Rd into Brickwood and Cedar, or directly down Lebanon Rd to Leslie Park Rd. Lebanon Rd is a nightmare ratrun and I really feel for those that live there because of the frequent ranting going on between drivers going in opposite directions.
Additionally at peak travel times Cherry Orchard Rd becomes a massive taxi rank on both sides of the Road.
Any new development is going to acutely exacerbate what is already a bad situation. Despite the plan to ban residents of the new buildings from having parking permits there will be huge numbers of visitors looking for parking spaces around the residential areas.
As a retired civil engineer I am curious to know what if anything has been done in respect of traffic planning in relation to the new development. Whoever was responsible for the existing traffic plan should have been fired. Try living here and see what it is like.
Lastly, it is bad enough having to cope with the NLA Tower, Knollys and Stephenson Houses in my back garden without having yet another bigger one to blight it further.”
by Mike, Ex Croydon
Friday, July 23 2010, 9:07AM
“"Some were over the rainbow" and yet another fantasy arrives in Croydon.
I guess the council and it's officers look forward to some more entertainment.”