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Published: 18th November, 2010
by DAN CARRIER

BATTLE lines have been drawn over plans for a 10-storey tower that critics say will change the face of Camden Town for ever.

The development could be built on Hawley Wharf, which is expected to be the subject of a major planning application in the New Year. Developers Stanley Sidings are set to submit a masterplan for the site, part of which was devastated by fire in 2008.

The tower proposals were seen on paper by the public for the first time at a three-day exhibition held this week after residents living close by had previously asked developers for buildings on the site not exceed six floors.

Plans for the four-acre site include a shopping mall-style “market” development alongside the Regent’s Canal, new social housing, a weekend food area similar to Borough Market, and public spaces. They also include private homes, a cinema and potentially a new primary school.

But Peter Clapp, of the Hawley Wharf Action Group which has held a series of public meetings to offer feedback to the developers over the past 15 months, called for the scheme to go straight back to the drawing board before a final application for planning permission goes into the Town Hall in the New Year. 

He said: “It was good that the developer has shared their ideas from an early stage but we feel they haven’t listened and were simply going through the motions of consultation.”

Mr Clapp cited the scheme to build a “shopping mall” next to the canal as too big and warned that there had been a “frightening lack of information”.

He added: “Over 15 months we have not seen an elevation along the canal so it is impossible to judge precisely whether the proposed height is satisfactory or not.”

An image on display at the exhibition requested by the New Journal showed a brick-clad development alongside the canal, with archways leading indoors. Stanley Sidings said the image was not available for publication and released an alternative instead. 

Mr Clapp claimed the a plan for a 10-storey building would dwarf those around it. He said: “We believe that the proposal as shown will destroy the character of Camden Town for ever.”

His fears were echoed by Lib Dem Haverstock ward councillor Matt Sanders. 

“The ‘market’ beside the canal is simply a shopping centre that exploits the history of Camden Town,” he said. “They are taking that legacy and using it for their own commercial gain.”

Castlehaven Community Association director Eleanor Botwright said that with a development of this size – it could include nearly 300 new homes – there would be an inevitable strain on services. Ms Botwright claimed that the new market area could undo years of building up Camden Town as a place for “alternative, independent shopping”. She added: “They may strangle the goose that lays the golden egg – it is a question of what they have on sale, and whether it will just be a massive store of cheaply produced T-shirts.”

Developer Mark Alper said the scheme had come about after close discussion with people in the area. 

He said: “Everything you see has been heavily consulted on with the local authority and the community, and all of their concerns have influenced these plans. We have not done this in the dark.”

Mr Alper said that  new public areas would reshape Camden Town for the better. 

“This is a masterplan – it creates several new public spaces for a ­mixture of uses,” he said. “It will be vibrant.”

Mr Alper claimed that the buildings would not be too big or ruin views. There are also plans to pull down the Water Lanes office blocks and put up seven-storey buildings. He added: “It is not about the height of buildings but the impact of the mass has on views. 

“The scheme provides the right balance of uses with a considerate ­architecture that responds to the local context and height is part of it, and responds to the key views.”

Last week, Camden Council announced they had asked the developer to consider whether  there would be room for a building for Hawley primary school on site. Critics say it had been sprung on the scheme late in the day, would mean losing around 50 affordable homes and the space would be too small to comfortably fit a school that would meet government regulations over outdoor space. 

A council spokesman said: “We have discussed an idea to relocate and expand Hawley Infants School. After discussions with the developers, it has been confirmed that there would be the required space. The Hawley Wharf Working Group had been notified of this and discussions with them about it will continue.”