Thread by @Andrewwood17

More failures of ambition by Tower Hamlets Council
Tower Hamlets Council for about 10 years now has used 585-593 Commercial Road as its car pound
Now intend to sell it to a private developer for housing
Not develop itself despite it having excellent transport connections
Why?
1/

Why sell an asset you own with a public transport access of PTAL of 6a (where 1 is worst and 6b best) making it one of the best-connected sites in TH (close to Limehouse DLR & c2c station)
The Mayor says he wants to deliver 2,046 new Council homes but then routinely misses
2/

opportunities to maximise development on land it owns
Examples

https://twitter.com/andrewwood17/status/1228687027438313473?s=21

or

https://twitter.com/andrewwood17/status/1432788363963158532?s=21

or
https://t.co/3D31gu0VEy
or

https://twitter.com/andrewwood17/status/1394909520728571904?s=21

If he really did want to deliver more new Council housing then you develop land you own - surely?
3/

Many of the 2,046 homes 'new' homes are not newly built by the Council homes but purchases of old homes or those built by private developers (s106 housing that housing associations would normally buy)

https://twitter.com/andrewwood17/status/1471494801753214983?s=21

But the Council is building some new homes itself
4/

but mainly small sites (under 50 homes per site)
I worry that too many small sites = loss of economies of scale = too expensive per unit
This is why Croydon failed
This site could deliver at least 120 new homes (I think this is a major understatement)
But Council thinks this
5/

would be too expensive to develop?
But if housing associations & private developers can do it (both delivering high levels of affordable housing) why not the Council?
The plan 10 years ago was to develop it for housing around 2016
Why did we not build new homes 5 years ago?
6/

This is a big site
Opportunities for new homes (nearby have 9 storey blocks), new parks/playgrounds, new retail space, new community space & still respect conservation areas next door
Can deliver the ground floor family size units desperately needed + key worker homes for NHS
7/

staff at the Royal London Hospital 5 minutes cycle ride, 13 minutes bus & walk or 19 minutes walk away
By contrast Barking & Dagenham Council to build 3,000 new homes in 4 years
lbbd.gov.uk/sites/default/…
They have set up their own delivery organisation
befirst.london
8/

So by contrast why is TH so unambitious (they have sold land before)
Do they need the cash? they have lots of it & are not spending it
Is the land contaminated? but that would affect the price
Have they no confidence in their ability to develop big projects? Blackwall Reach
9/

If I was elected as Mayor I would
-Look to maximise delivery of new homes on Council owned land - either through Council or housing association partnership - this will mean some increase in height (but not to CW levels)
-Not sell land unless part of a deal to unlock new land
10

for development by the Council
-Compulsory purchase of undeveloped land
-Maximise delivery of larger accommodation + key worker housing to support schools, NHS, Police, Fire Brigade etc with recruitment
-Ensure new Council homes & places 'beautiful'
11/

Forgot to add that a year ago the Council thought they could sell the site for £21.8 million
I cannot remember what the colours meant, maybe certainty of sale or value
democracy.towerhamlets.gov.uk/documents/s181…