Tall & Urban News

A recent decision by the Southwark council to approve plans for removing a 1960s brutalist block and replace it with a new 23-story office and retail development has caused the Twentieth Century society to voice their disapproval of the decision. 

A unanimous vote was given by the Southwark council to move forward with the scheme to replace the Colechruch House with the new high-rise development that will be opposite the Shard.  The new scheme is aiming to become a net zero carbon workplace and commercial hub.  

The new scheme will create a “park” at ground level and will also house a restaurant, retail space, a gym and new premises for the Southwark Playhouse. A bridge replacing the current crossing between the station and the existing building was reinstated in the plans following a public consultation in autumn 2020.

The Twentieth Century Society referenced the conversion of a 1974 brutalist former office in King’s Cross into the Standard Hotel as an example of how buildings fof this style and era can be successfully upgraded, and stated that buildings like Colechurch House contained a large amount of embodied carbon and its demolition could result in a substantial amount of environmental harm.

Southwark’s planning officer said in their report that Colechurch House is “considered to be of limited architectural merit,” and that,  "...renovation at Colechurch House would still not meet the sustainable workspace demands of today’s occupiers nor allow us to bring forward the level of benefits that this new building offers such as the expansive public park underneath and new multi-story theatre space.”

Read more on this story at Building Design.