London councils approves shift from a 166-apartment scheme into a 600-bed hotel
Lambeth council has approved a scheme that will turn a proposed apartment development by the River Thames into a luxury hotel.
Architect Jestico + Whiles got permission this week to rejig rival firm Make’s plans for the two 25-storey towers featuring 166 luxury flats into a development of a hotel across the two buildings with up to 600 beds.
The switch came after developer Ocubis decided to scrap plans for the homes on the Albert Embankment, following what it called “softening residential values and slow rates of sale”.
The group said the area, which is close to the burgeoning Nine Elms district in Vauxhall, had a “significant existing supply of new housing”, citing Foster + Partners’ Cornice scheme and Merano flats by RSHP and EPR as examples.
The new hotel scheme looks very similar to the proposed apartment development, with planners noting the project would not affect the area beyond the scope of the original plans.
Planning officers had already indicated the borough had a new policy that aimed to stop sites being used as visitor accommodation instead of conventional homes, “especially affordable family homes”, but said the rules could only be given limited weight in the case of the hotel switch.
Building work will kick off later this year, with completion expected in 2025.
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