Plans for new workspaces in South Tottenham win council backing

The Broad Lane scheme would see just under 5,000sqm of “flexible employment” floorspace created, reports Joe Ives, Local Democracy Reporter

View of new employment floorspace building from Broad Lane, South Tottenham (credit Broad Lane Properties Limited) — View of new employment floorspace building from Broad Lane, South Tottenham (credit Broad Lane Properties Ltd)

Proposals for a new multistorey workspace facility on the site of a former car wash in Tottenham have been given the go-ahead by Haringey councillors.

The redevelopment, to be built on land to the east of Broad Lane, South Tottenham, was approved at a meeting of Haringey Council’s planning sub-committee on Monday (5th).

In 2017 the council approved similar proposals, which also included plans to demolish the site’s former car wash and construct a new workspace building. Ultimately the scheme, put forward by Sigma (Tottenham) Ltd, never got off the ground.

The latest application was submitted by Tottenham-based real estate company Broad Lane Properties Limited.

The new applicant has, in the eyes of council officers, brought new and improved plans to increase employment floor space by nearly 3,000 square metres (sqm) more than had been previously granted by the local authority.

Their proposed development is set to be “broken into three distinct but adjoining elements”. These are to be split between a nine-storey section in the east, a six-storey block in the centre and a four-storey area to the west of the site.

The application, which can be viewed on the council’s planning portal using reference HGY/2023/0464, received four objections from local residents. These included concerns over height, loss of daylight and that the building would be “out of character” with the surrounding area.

However, the reasons for recommendation, put forward in a report by council planning officers, included claims that “the proposed redevelopment of the site would not result in any significant impacts on neighbouring occupiers”.

Despite the mixed architecture of the new building, council officers also said that each section would have an architectural “rhythm” compatible with the site as a whole.

The application was referred to the local authority’s planning committee as it was “defined as a major application” due to the proposed size of its floorspace and the fact that, if approved, it would be dependent on a Section 106 agreement.

Indeed, the scheme would see just under 5,000sqm of “flexible employment” floorspace, nearly 70% more than had been previously available at the site.

In their written summary of “key reasons” for why the development should be approved, planning officers argued that it “represents sustainable development” alongside “high-quality” employment floorspace.

They also noted that the scheme “complies with policy objectives regarding employment, impact upon amenity, transport and travel, energy and sustainability, landscaping, biodiversity flood risk and air quality”.

Officers argued that the development, located within a ‘locally significant industrial site’, would “support and enhance local employment opportunities” and “contribute positively” to the council’s aim of regeneration in Tottenham Hale “and the wider Fountayne Road area”.

The application was unanimously passed by the council’s planning committee on Monday with no amendments to conditions put forward by officers.

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