Tenter House, 45 Moorfields – re-consultation underway

The planning application for the proposed development at 45 Moorfields has gone to re-consultation “due to scheme amendments, including reduced height, and additional information”.

The revised application now reads: Demolition of the Class E unit (and related structures), ground and basement floor slab, car park and access ramp of Tenter House together with the demolition of part of the City Point Plaza floor slab and New Union Street, to provide a new part 14-storey and part 21-storey [+95.25m AOD] office building…[33,758sq.m GIA], with one ground floor retail unit…[287sq.m GIA], community floorspace at ground floor level…[142sq.m GIA], new level plaza (open space), and a reconstructed New Union Street, together with cycle parking, waste storage, servicing, landscaping, plant, and other associated works [Total 35,533 sq.m GEA]. Note: Demolition of the existing 11 storey building (except for the Class E Unit and its related structures) will take place pursuant to planning permission reference 17/01050/FULMAJ….

The revised planning application retains the same planning reference number (24/00209/FULMAJ) and the raft of new documents submitted can be viewed here

The Standard Consultation Expiry Date for this re-consultation is Monday 7^th October 2024.

 So what has changed?

Reduced height – of 4.66m (5%)

n.b. The current Tenter House is 11 storeys high and the previously consented scheme (planning reference number: 17/01050/FULMAJ) was for a building of 18-storeys giving a height of 87.8m AOD. The proposed height in this revised application is therefore 7.45m higher than that proposed in the previously consented scheme.

Reduced mass – of office floorspace by 3%

The previous planning application, validated on 26th March 2024, proposed office floorspace of 34880sqm and 2 retail spaces totalling 556sqm.  This revised application proposes office floorspace of 33758sqm (a reduction of 3%) and 1 retail space of 287sqm (a reduction of 48%).

n.b. The office floorspace in the current Tenter House totals 15465sqm scheme – hence the proposed office floorspace in the revised application is more than twice that of the existing. It is also 23% more than the previously consented scheme which was for office floorspace of 27443sqm.

Planning Statement Addendum lists the changes made:

According to the Planning Statement Addendum:

1.2 Following submission of the Application to the CoL, consultation between the Applicant and key stakeholders, including CoL planning and design officers, consultees, neighbouring landowners, and local residents has continued. As a result of these detailed discussions, design alterations to the proposals were sought, including a reduction in the proposed scale of the development, additional urban greening measures, and an amendment to the proposed ground floor uses.

1.3 …. The proposed changes to the Proposed Development are as follows:

• The reduction to the maximum height of the proposed building by 4.66m, achieved through the removal of a floor (3.85m) of the building, and the lowering of the roof plant parapet on the top floor (0.75m);
• The introduction of additional urban greening along the southern façade of the top storey of the proposed building;
• The relocation of the proposed community floorspace from the first floor to the ground floor of the building to increase visibility and prominence of the community use, and to encourage greater permeability of the ground floor and its interaction with City Point Plaza;
• The introduction of solar shading to the southern façade of the uppermost volume of the proposed building to minimise solar gain;
• The introduction of additional photovoltaic panels to be located on the surface of the solar shades to maximise renewable energy generation;
• The enhancement to the thermal performance of the cladding as a result of detailed design development;
• The addition of opening window panels to the first-floor façades;
• Development of the proposed building core to improve energy efficiency of the building; and
• Enhancements to the proposed planting on the 14th floor terrace.

Distant protected views drive the small reduction in height and mass

The Replacement Townscape, Heritage and Visual Impact (THVIR) document provides details and shows various views of the proposed building from around the locality. The document is too large to download to this website but it can be viewed when accessing the planning application details from the link already given

A few extracts may therefore be useful:

1.2….. The Proposed Development assessed in this Report takes into account amendments to the design made since the application was submitted – , most notably the reduction in the maximum height of the proposals by 4.66m together with changes to the detailed design of the building top. These design changes were made in consultation with and agreed by City of London (CoL) Officers following a review by the Applicant in light of concerns raised by the CoL as to the extent of visibility of part of the top of the Proposed Development beyond St. Paul’s Cathedral in albeit limited views from the South Bank when moving east from LVMF Viewing Location 16B………

5.2 The massing of the Proposed Development retains the townscape principles of the 2020 Scheme. It responds to the different heights of buildings existing in the locality, stepping down at the eastern end to reduce the appearance of the mass on Moorfields and to avoid visibility in distant LVMF views …… Like the 2020 Scheme, the western end of the Proposed Development steps down in relation to the adjacent mass of the new building at 21 Moorfields on Moor Lane. While the overall height and scale of the Proposed Development is broadly comparable with the 2020 Scheme, it is taller (95.25mAOD as opposed to 87.9mAOD).

5.4 …………….. The proposed volumes relate well to the proportions and rectilinear character of the other buildings which address City Point Plaza (44 Moorfields and City Point) and of the Plaza space itself.

Barbican and Golden Lane Estate Conservation Area Impact

7.12 …..Appendix C shows that the Proposed Development would be visible ……….from parts of the Barbican Highwalks and the residents’ communal gardens. ….. These views show that, where visible, the upper levels of the Proposed Development would be seen with other modern commercial development, most notably City Point, 21 Moorfields and Moor House. It would be set much lower than City Point and would mainly be seen ‘end on’, having much less prominence in these views than City Point. The buildings and landscape of the Barbican Estate in the foreground would remain the dominant aspect of these views and would remain fully appreciable. The Proposed Development would be seen and understood within an established urban setting of large scale modern commercial development to the east of the Estate…… and would not affect the character and appearance of the conservation area overall.

Further details of the design proposals can be viewed in the Design & Access Statement Addendum.

Daylight Sunlight and Overshadowing Report – Addendum

The Daylight, Sunlight and Overshadowing Report Addendum serves merely to confirm the applicant’s view that the increased height of the building will not have a detrimental impact on neighbouring properties. It states:

2.3 Whilst the Proposed Development will give rise to some minor reductions in daylight and sunlight to Willoughby House these reductions are considered to be so minor as to be unnoticeable particularly as the reductions identified are principally the result the presence of very deep overhanging projections above the windows in Willougby House itself

2.5 Applying the BRE’s suggested additional assessment, the daylight and sunlight impacts on Willoughby House are either minor (for isolated rooms when considering the NSL assessment) or fully compliant with the BRE Guidelines. It is therefore clear that it is the architectural features of Willoughby House itself that are the principal factor in the relative loss of light as opposed to there being any overdevelopment of the Site in the context of the Proposed Development, the subject of this Report.

Demolition of the site already approved

We would remind that demolition of the existing building has already commenced (pursuant to planning permission reference 17/01050/FULMAJ and is anticipated to take c6 months to complete. As such, by the time this new planning application is to be determined the building is likely to have been substantially demolished.

Access, entry and servicing routes

Turning to the important issues of access, entry and servicing, the Transport Assessment Addendum indicates that there have been no substantive changes to the Delivery and Service Plan (DSP). The Transport Assessment also outlines that the prior submitted proposals would generate a demand for 80 deliveries per day for the office use and 7-8 deliveries per day for the retail/commercial use, a total of 88 deliveries per day – whereas this revised application would give rise to a mere 82 deliveries per day. (Nevertheless, when this total is added to the 100+ deliveries every day to City Point, it is clear that Moor Lane is unlikely to be the quiet, greened street that was originally promised).

The servicing yard “has been designed to accommodate all anticipated regular delivery vehicles to the Site, and within this, provides sufficient space within the servicing yard to allow the most typical delivery vehicle, a 4.6t panel van, to manoeuvre on-site, allowing for all movements on New Union Street to be in forward gear”

Having said that – and as set out in the Transport Assessment – it should be noted that “the proposal is for vehicles to reverse into the service yard and exit in forward gear. The service yard has been designed to accommodate vehicles up to and including a 10m rigid lorry, albeit most vehicles will be smaller than this…”

The Assessment Addendum seeks to reassure “that deliveries will be consolidated at the Site, with the potential for 50% of deliveries to be consolidated, which would reduce servicing demand to around 41 deliveries per day. Nevertheless, the analysis demonstrates that the development in its worst-case scenario of 82 deliveries per day, would generate up to 10 HGVs per day, with the remainder (72 deliveries) being by smaller vehicles of motorcycles, cars and vans, which have substantially lower impact on the environment and the local highway network and neighbouring residential amenity. However, in “the consolidated scenario…. the 41 deliveries per day would generate up to 5 HGVs per day, with the remainder (36 deliveries) being by LGVs including motorcycles.

The Addendum goes on “it is expected that the vast majority of vehicles will be small to medium sized (such as motorcycles, cars or vans) which are generally not equipped with the audible warnings or reverse bleeps which can affect amenity. Whilst HGVs are more likely to emit audible warnings, they service the development much less frequently….”

The Applicant seeks to reassure by stating that they are “willing to limit servicing hours as reasonably recommended by the CoL to minimise any potential impact on amenity and the local highway network. As per the consented development, deliveries would be undertaken at off-peak times”.

What constitutes off-peak times is not clarified however.

Representations to be submitted by 7th October

Representations should be submitted by Monday 7^th October 2024 and can be made here. Alternatively, representations can be sent to: PLNcomments@cityoflondon.gov.uk