A look at Lewisham Gateway scheme including cinema, shops and 530 flats
Over the past year plans for a cinema in central Lewisham alongside shops and homes has been approved by Lewisham Council.
Throughout 2019 further details have been revealed including just what areas of the site will be constructed first. Work was due to commence by winter 2019 but clearly that has yet to happen anytime soon – and spring 2020 is now mooted.
For those looking forward to a new cinema, the bad news is that’s included in the last phase and will not complete until late 2022.
Other buildings should start in 2020 for completion after 2021. The first block to complete is due to be this one:
Yep, garish is an understatement. It looks pretty cheap. That, however, could change, as when approved Lewisham councillors complained they were restricted with mass and height decisions as outline approval was given back in 2009 – though they did seek concessions that the developer would further engage with Lewisham Council on cladding.
However, looking at plans submitted in August 2019 little appears to have changed.
A tower will follow on for completion in 2022.
The relatively clean lines of Lewisham Gateway’s earlier towers – located beside the station – have been discarded.
One issue with the project is that the central spine designed to link Lewisham station with the current town centre is pretty narrow given expected pedestrian flows – with much land given over to the building’s footprint.
If you’ve wondered why the current wide crossing is located where it is, that’s because it is due to connect with that path through the Lewisham Gateway site.
Though it only connects to the rear wall of the current shopping centre. When it’s eventually rebuilt that should change.
A tower on an adjacent site named Lewisham Exchange will rise far quicker, assuming no hiccups. Work started on site last week and the modular nature of construction should see 35 and 20-floor towers rise quickly next year.
Plans for another tower from Meyer Homes on Tesco’s car park were appealed, with a decision expected soon.
As covered last week, L&Gs tower plan on the site of Sports Direct has not progressed, though they announced new funding partnerships last week.
Assuming the Gateway plan goes ahead and finishes in 2022, it will open just before new DLR trains are introduced in 2023. There’s absolutely no word on any new or additional trains for Southeastern. Work on any station upgrade is on hiatus – and the Bakerloo line extension to Lewisham has no confirmed funding.
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Lewisham and neighbouring Catford have been screaming out for improvements for years. I think with once the shopping Centre has been rebuilt and the new shops and the cinema are completed on the Lewisham Gateway developments. Lewisham Town Centre will start to thrive again as a major Shopping Centre.
Sadly Lewisham Town Centre has suffered many of the anti social behaviour problems which Woolwich as seen over the last few years.
Like Woolwich, Lewisham Town Centre needed regeneration which can only be good news for local businesses and residents of the Borough.
It will also bring many new homes to the Borough,
Many new homes that the locals cannot afford, not to mention the strain on the already groaning public services and transportation. As for the Lewisham shopping centre rebuild, that’s years’ away and the Bakerloo line extension is nothing but a pipedream.
London is always changing, it has done for centuries. You can’t throw a strop every time something changes that doesn’t benefit you. These inner Zone 2 areas are being regenerated across the whole of London, and will eventually mean those without the means to live there will need to relocate. It will also mean the sort of people who use the centre now, will change. Look at other areas of London to see how drastically it can change within 5-10 years.