By Andrew Batt:
The Mayor of London has unveiled ambitious plans to create the UK’s largest ‘floating village’ as part of his on-going drive to transform London’s Royal Docks.
Launching an international competition to find developers and London partners to design and deliver the scheme, Mayor Boris Johnson made the announcement as he travelled to MIPIM, the world’s premier property conference, where he will be promoting this unique site and other investment opportunities in London.
His plans will see 15 acres of water at the Royal Victoria Dock site transformed into a thriving community with floating homes, hotels, restaurants and bars. When completed, it will be one-and-a-half times the size of Green Park and have some of the best transport links in the capital with a new Crossrail station, DLR and cable car linking it to central London and Canary Wharf.
Although a first for the UK, floating developments are already a popular idea on the continent with successful schemes at IJburg near Amsterdam and Hafen City in Hamburg as well as many others throughout Scandinavia. The Mayor, who inherited over 600 ha of land as a result of the Localism Act in April 2012, is currently one of the largest owners of public land in London. He is determined to bring more public land forward for development and accelerate the number of homes being built for Londoners. As part of this, the redevelopment of the entire Royal Docks area is one of his key priorities.
His investments in this area have already led to the opening of the Emirates cable car and the Siemens Crystal Centre as well as upcoming developments at Silvertown Quays and Royal Albert Docks.
Throwing down the gauntlet to international and home-grown investors to come up with a spectacular design that will make his vision of London’s first liquid postcode a reality, Mayor Johnson said: "This site is unique. It has the potential to become one of the most sought after addresses in the capital while breathing new life back into London’s waterways. But it’s not alone. Right across London there are incredible investment opportunities that I’m determined to bring to market creating more homes and jobs for Londoners.”
Andrew Batt, International Group Editor of PropertyGuru, wrote this story. To contact him about this or other stories email andrew@propertyguru.com.sg
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