Consultation on 187-199 ends on Feb 14th

These plans went into the council before Christmas. If you’ve no idea what I’m talking about then gen up on the background, maps, pictures etc.. In a nutshell: 203 flats to be built on the land between the tube and overground lines to the west of West End Lane, fronted today by the shops from Café Bon to Michael Leonard Estates: 187-199 West End Lane. The image below also misses out the 6-storey longer-block of affordable housing at the back (left) of the site.

The planning documents are lengthy and incredibly detailed, To access the whole lot, you need to enter ref 2011/6129/P into Camden’s planning search engine, click the application number when it comes up, and then click “View Related Documents”. I’ve linked to a few of the critical ones below, and the main planning document is here – I’ve drawn your attention to some paragraphs with red borders

If you want to comment on the plans you need to do by February 14th. You can do so via the Camden planning site (it’s easy enough to find). The sort of issues that have exercised people include:

  • Height – at 12 storeys high, the middle tower will dwarf anything else in West Hampstead;
  • Potential loss of daylight for houses close to the development (developer’s report here);
  • Whether the existing local businesses on the site will be allowed to continue operating until demolition is essential, whether they will be offered first option on the new commercial premises included in the proposals, and whether that would be at a reasonable rent (retail floor plans top left here, and see 6.30-6.33 in the main planning document);
  • The impact on traffic and transport in the area, despite being nominally a zero-parking development (developer’s report here).

There may be other issues you’re concerned about – although do check the documents to see if they’ve already been addressed. It’s probably fair to say that the plans are not going to be summarily dismissed by the planners. There is a need for housing, the land has aleady been identified as suitable for residential development, and it ties in with the London Plan that calls for 800 new homes around the stations in West Hampstead over the next few years. The details – especially the height – are up for debate though.

Local residents group WHGARA has been most vocal in its opposition to scale of the development, and is exhorting people to “Act now“. Meanwhile, WHAT has posted its letter to Camden, which I’ve added to the comments below.

Update via Cllr Andrew Marshall (Swiss Cottage): The council’s email address for comments on planning applications is changing. From the end of January, use .