City makeover: Planning chief unveils major revamp bid to build more skyscrapers and lure in nightime West End goers
Ambitious plans to transform London’s skyline and revamp the Square Mile’s muted nighttime economy were unveiled by the City’s influential planning chief today, in a bid to keep the capital’s financial centre a global leader post-Brexit.
In a wide-reaching 20 year local plan revealed today, The City Corporation is hoping to enlarge its cluster of skyscrapers to keep up with the fast-paced demand from developers and foreign buyers for new tall buildings.
“These plans are twice as critical because of Brexit. Fears about huge job losses have not materialised, but we still need to keep up competition with the likes of New York and Singapore,” said Christopher Hayward, the City’s planning and transportation committee chairman.
According to the City’s planning policymaker Peter Shadbolt, extending the City’s skyscraper zone to sites closer to the river by the Walkie Talkie are essential if the City is to carry on opening up “opportunity for investors who want big buildings and want to invest in London”.
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Dramatic changes to the Square Mile’s south-facing waterfront are also being mulled by City planners, who are looking to lure in Londoners from other areas of the capital for evening and weekend business.
Hayward told City PM: “We want to make sure the City doesn’t go silent at 7pm like it used to, and that people don’t have to migrate to the West End. It’s an area which has looked poor and shabby for a long time and we want it to be at least the quality of the South Bank."
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Among the potential plans for the riverfront from the Tower of London to London Bridge is a walkway with shops and restaurants, as well as a mixed-use redevelopment of the area.
The plans, which are expected to be put out for consultation next month following the City planning committee’s likely approval, also include efforts to regenerate Fleet Street’s reputation as a place for “legal excellence”, according to Hayward, who has plans for a new courthouse and City police headquarters in the historic stomping grounds for newspapers.