Developers Bid for Goldhawk Road Site

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Proposals presented for redevelopment of former care home

Five organisations displayed their plans for a new building at 282-288 Goldhawk Road, at an exhibition last weekend.

The five have been shortlisted by the council to purchase and redevelop the one-acre site on the corner of Goldhawk Road and Ashchurch Grove, where a former residential care home currently stands.

“The overall desire is for high quality buildings that produce a well balanced community that integrates with the current urban environment,” the council said.

Bidders were invited to design a development incorporating affordable rented accommodation, shared ownership flats, apartments for private sale, and 17 one-bedroom supported units. Vehicle access to the new development is to be via Ashchurch Park Villas.  

"Residents at the scheme would not be entitled to apply for a street car parking space as there will be parking provided within the development," the council said.

The shortlisted bidders displaying their proposals all said their buildings were designed to fit in with the local environment, but there were different interpretations of what this meant. There was a great emphasis on landscaping and environmentally-friendly features.

Some of the main features of each plan:

1. Places for People: Most of the proposed development is made up of houses, rather than flats, and 82% of units have their own front door onto the street. There is an underground car park, 2 tree-lined public squares, and every unit has its own private outside space, such as a courtyard or roof terrace.

2. Notting Hill Housing: The developers say their design is not a ‘look at me’ building. The different types of accommodation unit all look the same from the outside, the balconies are recessed rather than overhanging and the finish is brick, although the colour is not yet decided.

There is also a new landscaped area in the middle of the development.

3. L&Q Housing Trust: The developers say their plans include 72 mixed-use homes, as well as the 17 supported accommodation units. The homes are all contained in a four-storey building with a brick finish. The building has an internal courtyard, a biomass boiler and there is the possibility of solar panels on the roof.  

4. Inspace Homes with Catalyst Housing Group: On display was a white rendered building but the developers said a brick exterior was also a possibility. The building is three and four storeys high and the 73 mixed-use homes look the same from the outside. The windows are designed to be like those of nearby terraces and there is a central, landscaped courtyard as well as a balcony, roof terrace or garden for each unit. The underground car park has one space for each flat.

5. Guinness Trust with Look Ahead Housing and Care: This development has a brick and stone exterior. The landscaping includes the use of pergolas near the bicycle racks and at the entrance to the underground car park, as well as a low-maintenance communal garden for residents. There are solar panels on the roof to take advantage of the site’s south-facing location.

The council said it would read through the feedback given by visitors to the exhibition, before deciding which bidder would be selected to proceed. Once a planning application is submitted, probably in the autumn, local residents will be able to take part in the formal consultation process. 

H&F declined to say how much money they hoped to raise from the sale of the site.

Yasmine Estaphanos

 

15 May 2008