Housing secretary upholds approval of £250m Richmond urban village
The housing secretary has granted property developer Avanton the go-ahead for a new 453-home urban village in Richmond.
Avanton acquired the site in 2018 but its planning permission was initially refused by Richmond Council the following year.
Mayor of London Sadiq Khan intervened to grant permission in October 2020 after Avanton announced plans to make 173 of the 453 apartments affordable.
Given the number of local interest, the scheme was referred to the housing secretary who has said he does not want to block the application and it is in the hands of Khan.
That the decision should be determined by the Mayor and Greater London Authority means planning approval stands.
“This site is well-connected, under-utilised, previously developed land that is exactly the kind of site we need to intensify if we are to develop in a sustainable manner, protect the green belt, and deliver the homes Londoners need,” Khan said.
Construction on the 4.45 acre development, formerly a Homebase site, will begin this summer and take two and a half years.
Existing buildings will be demolished and replaced with four buildings between four and 11 storeys high, designed by Assael Architecture.
“Avanton is delighted that the new urban-village in RIchmond hasbeen granted the go-ahead with the Secretary of State upholding the Mayor of London’s planning approval,” a spokesperson for the company said.
“Avanton’s new urban-village will create a collection of high quality private sale homes and will also have a transformative effect on access to affordable housing in Richmond, providing the same as the total number of new affordable homes that have been delivered in the entire borough over the last three years.”
Alongside the Richmond development, Avanton will start work on its new 1,152-home Ruby Triangle development on Old Kent Road in March.