Lessons Learnt - Design for London

c n lso eng ge with town centre tr nsform tion
through the ssem ly of priv tely held l nd. This
m y e ppropri te where sm ll nd fr gmented
sites inhi it good qu lity intensific tion ut lso
where l rge-sc le l nd-ownerships such s y
institution l ret il l ndowners would inhi it the
tr nsform tion of underperforming shopping
centres.
This l nd c n then e ssem led into redevelopment
portfolio which c n e issued to
the m rket for priv te sector led redevelopment.
In this w y the pu lic sector c n pl y n ctive
role in re lising good qu lity housing provision.
Innov tive p rtnership delivery methods such s
Loc l Housing Comp nies nd Loc l Asset-B sed
Vehicles re now eing pioneered cross London to
c pit lise on this potenti l, nd pro ctive role of
the HCA could h ve powerful enefits in this reg rd.
Equ lly, it is possi le to give loc l communities
more direct st ke in such developments through
the cre tion of Asset B sed Trusts, Community
Interest Comp nies nd other loc lly-rooted org nis
tion l forms which link development directly with
long-term community sset ownership nd the
delivery of soci l infr structure. This m y pl y n
incre singly import nt role in delivering housing,
overcoming loc l opposition to new development s
well s sust ining nd gener ting soci l cohesion
in the long term.
This process c n e supported y the prep r tion of
Supplement ry Pl nning Documents s discussed
e rlier. This c n e followed y the prep r tion
of specific site development riefs y the loc l
uthorities which c n define the expected density
of housing th t would e delivered s p rt of towncentre
redevelopment schemes. It will e in the
h nds of individu l oroughs to define spir tions
for higher density housing within town centres, in
close coll or tion with the GLA f mily.
density incentives
A more r dic l ppro ch to llowing nd
encour ging higher density development is the
potenti l use of structur l density incentives or
onuses. This is n ppro ch used in num er
of pl nning systems outside the UK. In essence,
in cert in zones property owners re offered the
opportunity to uild to higher densities th n cert in
selines set y the pl nning policy fr mework,
if specific fe tures or menities re incorpor ted
or contri utions m de. These must ll e seen
s h ving loc lly relev nt pu lic enefit, in the
context of str tegic pl n. The r nge of enefits
nd investments c n e:
• Pu lic use re s on site including pu lic- ccess
g rdens, squ res nd pedestri n through
routes;
• Building design fe tures such s green roofs
nd/or f ç des, upper level set cks, lower level
l ndsc ped terr ces, corner set cks, ctive
ground floor sp ces or fford le worksp ce;
• Off site pu lic re lm improvements: streetsc pe
investments, open sp ces or l ndsc ping over
nd ove Section 106 contri ution;
• Contri utions to pu lic tr nsport; us stops,
st tion upgr des or revenue funding;
• Design excellence should e n solute
precondition for such density incre ses.
V ri tions on this system exist in m ny US cities
such s New york, Chic go nd in S n fr ncisco.
Whilst the current pl nning policy nd Section 106
fr mework in pr ctice llows for such tr de-offs on
c se y c se sis, this system m kes it more
predict le nd tr nsp rent. Eng gement of CLG is
encour ged s this would ent il re-consider tion
of some fund ment l spects of how development
propos ls re reviewed nd negoti ted.
5. LESSONS LEARNT: PLANNING AND DELIVERy 81
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