DESIGN UPDATE The core members of the team involved in this project are: Architects: Sheppard Robson / Morrow + Lorraine Project Manager: GVA / Second London Wall Landscape Consultant: Martha Schwartz Planning Advisors: DP9 Townscape Consultant: Peter Stewart Heritage Advisor: K M Heritage Structural Engineer: Arup Structures Services Engineer: Cundall Transport Consultants: Arup Transport Quantity Surveyor: Gardiner and Theobald Archaeology Consultant: CgMs Consulting WELCOME AND INTRODUCTION Thank you for taking the time to attend our second public exhibition. This exhibition builds upon feedback collected at our first exhibition in October, which focused on the heritage present on the site and our vision for the site going forward. Having listened to your views and held extensive meetings with the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, officers from Historic England and other key stakeholders, we have developed our ideas and would once again like to seek your opinion, prior to finalising our planning application. The key themes from the exhibition and subsequent meetings with the planners were as follows: • Opening up the site and stitching it back into the surrounding area was seen as a positive move. • Reinstating the access route from the St Mary Graces residential onto the site and through to Tower Hill station via step free access was requested. • The heritage elements, especially The Johnson Smirke Building, should be the focus for the masterplan of the whole site. • The new buildings should be set out to improve the setting of the key listed building, The Johnson Smirke. • More retail on the site was requested. DESIGN UPDATE 3 4 2 ACCESS OPTIONS FROM TOWER HILL TUBE ACCESS FROM DLR 1 STITCHING THE SITE INTO THE SURROUNDING AREAS The Royal Mint Court site is approximately 5.18 acres and currently cut off from surrounding public space by the listed wall and current road system. Following on from the first exhibition, two key desire lines were felt to be positive additions to the local area. Both have been incorporated in the current proposition. 1 Desire line n°1 is a north/south link from Mansell Street, through a new opening in the wall, via the rear courtyard and step free access to East Smithfield and St Katharine Docks. 2 Desire line n°2 is the reopening of the route from St Mary Graces and the eastern residential uses into the heart of the site, and via step free access to Tower Hill tube station. 3 Routes through the site provide local residents with easy access to the proposed retail offer within the site. 4 Finally, the heritage contained on site has been used to generate a concept of symmetry and organisation for the setting out of Murray and Dexter House, which will dramatically improve views of the Johnson Smirke Building, enabling a greater appreciation of the full history of the site. DESIGN UPDATE DEXTER HOUSE MURRAY HOUSE THE REGISTRY REAR COURTYARD JOHNSON SMIRKE FRONT SQUARE STAFF HOUSE SITE MASTERPLAN/ CONCEPT • The development approach to the site is to base the design around the formality and symmetry of the Johnson Smirke Building and use this pivotal building to set out the proposals for the developed Murray and Dexter House, to the rear of the site. In addition, Murray and Dexter House will be cut back to allow better views from outside the site to the Johnson Smirke Building. • In the front square, the formality of Johnson Smirke sets out a new building to the south/west to enclose the front square and provide a more sympathetic setting to the Johnson Smirke. This building replaces one demolished in the 1940s. • The Registry Building will see the removal of the sub standard 1980s cladding and propose a more appropriate material palette to compliment the retained listed facades. • Key openings into the external wall will allow better linkages to the new public spaces as noted on Board 2. • The elevation and courtyard treatment of Murray and Dexter House will support the formality generated by the Johnson Smirke Building. • All external areas are accessible to the public with new landscaping, both hard and soft. DESIGN UPDATE THE JOHNSON SMIRKE BUILDING • Johnson Smirke is a Grade II* listed building. During the 1980s the building was refurbished and converted into offices and as a result underwent major demolition. Most of the building was demolished apart from the façade, main staircase and clock. It is currently vacant. • Externally the stone and brickwork façade is in reasonable condition and the proposal is to undertake a full overhaul and repair regime to bring it back to its past glory. Much of the rear elevation was altered by work in the 1980s and was not rebuilt in line with the original design. GROUND FLOOR PLAN • The interior is outdated and suffers from poor natural light. Generally the building core and toilet layouts are poorly designed and not fit for modern use. The proposal will seek to improve these areas by way of a more rationalised and efficient design, deployed in a manner that is sensitive to the buildings listed features. • The proposal leaves the front and side elevations almost untouched. • The main external change is the replacement of the top floor 1980s extension on the rear elevation, which was designed in an insensitive and ill-considered way. Through working closely with a heritage adviser, Historic England and London Borough of Tower Hamlets, we have produced a design that is far more in keeping with the character of the original building, and drastically improves the internal quality of space. • Other external changes include minor alterations to the ground and lower ground floor rear openings, and the addition of two new bridges giving the new retail units access to the courtyard. NEW INTERNAL DOUBLE HEIGHT LINK FROM THE SECOND TO THIRD FLOOR DESIGN UPDATE PUBLIC REALM PUBLIC REALM MURRAY AND DEXTER HOUSE • All 1980s cladding will be removed. • The front bays of the building will be cut back to improve the setting of the Johnson Smirke Building. • The remainder of the existing structure will be retained to provide a more sustainable development, reduce construction noise and speed up the delivery programme. • The building will provide good quality, sustainable office space with retail at ground floor level. • The building will be capable of providing employment for 5,000+ people. • The building will comply with all appropriate current disabled and environmental legislation. • The newly landscaped rear courtyard will provide an exciting backdrop to the retail, with the reinstated route through to the residential located to the east. DESIGN UPDATE MURRAY AND DEXTER HOUSE VIEW INTO REAR COURTYARD NEW VIEW THROUGH FROM EAST SMITHFIELDS TO JOHNSON SMIRKE VIEW ACROSS REAR COURTYARD DESIGN UPDATE THE REGISTRY BUILDING • The existing listed facades will be retained and refurbished. • The sub-standard 1980s cladding located largely to the rear will be removed and replaced with high quality brickwork to complement the existing listed facade. • The large 1980s mansard roof will be removed and replaced with a more elegant, part glazed office floor. • The Registry Building will be designed to provide employment for 700+ people with extensive retail at ground and lower ground levels. • The new design to Mansell Street will greatly enhance the appearance of the building from outside of the site. DESIGN UPDATE THE NEW STAFF HOUSE • In order to reinstate the formal setting of the front courtyard, we propose to reinstate the original Staff House Building at the front of the site, which was demolished in the mid-20th century. The building is to provide a possible mix of uses and will: • Reinstate the original symmetry of the forecourt surrounding the Johnson Smirke Building. • Provide a protective arm around the front landscaped courtyard. • Be set to match the earlier building, with the appearence following the language of the listed elements of the Registry Building. • Provide retail and office use, with disabled access from the existing subway. DESIGN UPDATE PUBLIC REALM/ LANDSCAPE A B To increase the permeability of the public realm we are proposing the following: A. Front Courtyard • Opening up the Lawn area and providing a more direct route from the street via the removal of the fence. • Reinforcing the symmetry of the Johnson Smirke building using an axial configuration of the Public Realm. 01 FRONT LAWN. CURRENT 02 REAR COURTYARD. CURRENT 02 FRONT LAWN. PROPOSAL 04 REAR COURTYARD. PROPOSAL 03 FRONT LAWN. PERSPECTIVE VIEW. PROPOSAL 04 REAR COURTYARD. PERSPECTIVE VIEW. PROPOSAL • Introducing seating on the lawn, providing views of the surrounding area and the Johnson Smirke Building. B. Rear Courtyard • Creating a Tree Grove, adding greenery to the space. • Subdividing the space to provide more flexibility. • Introducing glass paving and metal pavers to view the archeological remains below the site. DESIGN UPDATE SUSTAINABILITY Royal Mint Court will be designed to achieve an ‘Excellent’ BREAAM environmental standard. The environmental solutions will incorporate the following elements: • 1000m2 of high efficiency photovoltaic panels to generate carbon-free electricty for the site. • Selected electrical and mechanical systems which will save 1,100 tonnes of CO2 per year, which equates to a 47% improvement over the 2013 Building Regulations requirements. • Provision to connect to local district heating network when available in order to future proof the site. • All buildings to be connected to a site-wide low carbon heat network, supplied by a combined heat and power plant. • Extensive cycle facilities to encourage the use of green transport and promote healthy lifestyles. • Green roofs and increased landscaping to improve biodiversity on the site. • Blue roofs to reduce water discharge from the site. • Reuse of existing structure and facades where possible to reduce the embodied energy of the development by: Retained Steel= 1500 tonnes= 2855 tonnes of embodied CO2. Retained Concrete= 5240 tonnes= 1340 tonnes of embodied CO2. • Centralised recycle facilities to reduce the amount of waste to landfill. • All timber to be procured from responsible forest sources. • Low energy LED lighting, with automated daylight and occupancy controls to reduce electricty usage. • Maximised natural daylight via solar efficient glazing to improve occupant comfort and reduce energy consumption. • Good solar control to reduce cooling loads and Carbon Emissions. • Enhanced thermal insulation levels to reduce energy consumption and Carbon Emissions. n Site: 3rd Quarter 2015 ated Completion: 2018 DESIGN UPDATE we would be grateful if you r views. The exhibition boards are k from Monday the 23rd of March e. If you have any further questions, WIDER BENEFITS TO THE COMMUNITY JOBS DELANCEY AND CHARITY IN THE COMMUNITY The Development should provide in excess of 5,000 jobs on site. Delancey is committed to supporting key initiatives in the local communities in which their projects are based, including the local Tower Hamlets community. • Office (4,887 jobs) • Retail, Restaurants/Cafes and Gym (335 jobs) * The estimated jobs total was calculated using the Homes and Communities Agency’s (HCA)’s Employment Densities Guide, 2nd Edition, 2010. The Development will also provide further indirect jobs, as a result of the purchase of goods and services by businesses located with the Development. This is estimated at 842 local jobs. * The figure acounts for displacement and leakage, induced and indirect effects, using methodology as stated in the English Partnerships, 2008, ‘Additionality Guide: A Standard Approach to Assessing the Additional Impacts of Projects’. Expenditure The total figure of 6,064 jobs generated directly and indirectly by the Development would generate approximately £243,863,760 Gross Value Added (GVA) annually into the regional (London) Economy. * ONS data for GVA per employee in London - £40,215 GVA per employee. Employee spend (5,222 jobs) from the Development would be expected to bring an additional £4,361,414 per year into the local economy. * Employee spend was calculated by assuming 60% of employees would spend £6 per day on food and drink on 232 days per year. Local Upskilling It would be a client requirement for the selected contractor to use an agreed % of local trades and to provide local apprenticeships in the construction of the buildings. Snow-Camp • Over the last 3 years Delancey has been supporting the innovative youth charity Snow-Camp. Snow-Camp’s programmes seek to positively change the lives of disadvantaged inner city young people by combining snowsports and intensive youth work to engage, challenge and motivate, ultimately transforming their attitudes and behaviour to enable them to develop key life-skills, gain qualifications and find employment. • Over the last few years Snow-Camp has been working in Tower Hamlets and formed strong partnerships with organisations such as City Gateway. We are delighted to report that last summer SnowCamp grew their reach in the borough, introducing 45 local children to the programme and engaging with a further four organisations. Chess in Schools • Delancey is the sole sponsor of the UK Schools’ Chess Challenge. Beginning every Spring Term, and continuing over four stages and eight months, the tournament reaches over 50,000 children across the UK each year, including 108 children from Tower Hamlets over the last 9 years; a number we are looking to grow further in the forthcoming years. • Delancey has recently committed to funding a school and library programme in Tower Hamlets for the inner-city charity Chess in Schools and the Community (CSC). East End Community Foundation • Delancey is a business member of the East End Community Foundation, which is dedicated to increasing opportunities for people living in London’s East End boroughs. DESIGN UPDATE • The current buildings are empty and at the end of their useful economic life. • The buildings have poor quality cladding and engineering systems, and have poor sustainability from an environmental viewpoint. • The image of the site is one of neglect and emptiness. • The public realm is tired, lacking in imagination and not accessible to the public, due to the impenetrable listed wall and lack of access through the site. • The heritage on site is not accessible or appreciated by the public. • All the above has been considered in our updated proposals. EXISTING DEVELOPMENT SUMMARY RESPONSE TO FIRST EXHIBITION FEEDBACK • The proposals seek to fully regenerate all buildings and provide employment use for in excess of 5,000 people, in over 500,000 sq. ft. of net office space. • 66,000 sq. ft. of retail uses; bars, restaurant, gym and general support space will be included for office users, local residents and the surrounding area. • Openings in the walls on the north and south elevations will provide a clear route through the site towards St Katharine Docks from Mansell Street. • The residential route onto the site from the east will be reinstated. • The new buildings will provide a dynamic use of office and retail set within newly accessible landscaped public squares and courtyard. • The new buildings and public realm will greatly enhance the heritage of the site, and provide an improved setting and public access to the Johnson Smirke Building. • The rejuvenation of this key gateway into the London Borough of Tower Hamlets will serve as a marker to the wider aspiration for the borough. PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT