An amended application for the site at 8-10 Broadway in Westminster has been refused by City Mayor Sadiq Khan due to a lack of 'affordable' housing within the development.
Developer BL Developments secured planning approval for the 268-home mixed-use site in April 2016. Proposals included building six residential buildings ranging from 14 to 20 storeys providing 246 residential units on the 1.78-acre triangular site south of St James's Park in Westminster.
The previous Mayor, Boris Johnson, granted planning permission after the Abu Dhabi-owned developer offered a £10m payment and 10 affordable' homes.
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Since securing approval, BL Developments has sought to increase the the total number of apartments by 27, from 268 to 295, with no increase in the number of affordable units or payment in lieu. However, these plans have now been refused.
The Mayor's decision comes weeks after he strongly criticised Wandsworth Council for allowing the developers of Battersea Power Station to cut the amount of affordable housing by 40% from 636 homes to just 386 – 9% of the 4,239 homes across the scheme.
Despite having no formal power to intervene under current planning regulations, he wrote to the local authority strongly objecting the decision.
Speaking about the 8-10 Broadway site, Mayor Khan said: "This is a site which has only recently been transferred from public ownership and sits within one of the most expensive areas of the country. Having carefully considered the evidence available to me, I have decided to refuse permission for this amended application.
"This comes just a few weeks after the outrageous decision to cut the level of affordable housing at Battersea Power Station and I am more determined than ever to do all I can to ensure Londoners are not short-changed when it comes to developers doing their bit to help tackle London's housing crisis. The government now needs to show it is committed to this too and devolve the powers to help me stop developers getting away with unacceptably low levels of affordable housing."
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