London mayor approves Blossom Street redevelopment

London mayor Boris Johnson has resolved to grant planning permission for the office-led redevelopment at Blossom Street, Spitalfields, London. The mayor’s recent decision overturns Tower Hamlets Council’s decision to refuse planning permission. Last year, the Council went against their planning officers’ recommendation and refused to grant planning permission for the redevelopment which prompted Johnson to call in the application.Following pre-application advice, developers British Land amended their original proposal and more recently made changes to the number of buildings they were retaining after comments from the Greater London Authority (GLA).The commercially led mixed-use redevelopment covers 0.9 hectares of land and comprises of buildings between four and 14 storeys high. The proposal is mainly for offices but also includes restaurants, public open spaces and 40 new homes. Earlier this month, the GLA recommended that the mayor should approve the scheme. The report concluded that the proposed development is suitable in terms of design, public realm, heritage, environmental issues, transport and land use.The GLA also stated that the “proposal will not harm the conservation area or its setting or any listed buildings or their setting.”