| |
Little people take a mighty stand
Fitzrovia residents petition against ‘Canary Wharf-style’
hospital building plans
A “CANARY Wharf-style fortress” set to replace the redundant Middlesex Hospital will plunge neighbouring buildings into darkness, residents have claimed.
Westminster Council will take the final decision next month on plans by luxury developers Candy & Candy, to turn the Fitzrovia hospital into a complex of shops, offices and 273 homes.
More than 200 residents and businesses in surrounding streets have signed a petition pleading with developers to reduce the height of their plans which they say will almost double the height of the existing building.
The hospital, which was sold by University College London Hospital last year for £175 million, rests on the border of Camden and Westminster. Last week Camden Council voted unanimously to reject the plans. Their comments will be considered when Westminster takes the final decision in June.
Teacher Malcolm Salomon, who organised the petition, said: “The shock was with Westminster planning department giving us an expectation that the building would fit in with the area rather than being a Canary Wharf-like fortress. It creates an oppressive atmosphere over the surrounding streets and blocks out our light. This is a fight of the little people against the mighty.”
When the sale of the building was announced last year, a New Journal investigation traced the buyers – investment consortium PAGL Ltd (Project Abbey (Guernsey) Ltd) – to an address in tax haven Guernsey, where it was registered in May this year.
Leading the consortium is CPC Group, fronted by Christian Candy, co-founder of luxury residential developers and interior designers Candy & Candy, who specialise in exclusive projects in London and Monaco.
Max Neufeld, chair of the Charlotte Street Residents’ Association, is calling for a public meeting. He said a recent public exhibition showing the plans did not go far enough, adding: “Westminster talks about four storeys going to maybe six in the middle but here we’ve got a building which is nine stories high.”
The plans include provision for a medical centre but residents are also hoping developers will invest in classrooms and a better play area for All Soul’s school as well as a library or community centre swimming pool.
Stephen Smith, director of CPC said: “Residents generally object to height as a matter of principle. It’s usually in their interests to do so as they generally get compensated for rights of light. We’ll take all complaints seriously and the planning application will go through the normal process. ”
|
| |
 |
|
| |
| |
