Woolwich Catholic Club: Revised plans for student block
Plans have been submitted to build student accommodation with 298 rooms on the site of Woolwich’s former Catholic Club.
A proposal was approved in 2016 but never built, while during consultation the idea of co-living units was proposed. This is when residents have a room but share kitchens and living areas.
Students blocks aren’t much different, and that’s what the developer has now opted to pursue.
The block will be located beside Premier Inn on Beresford Road.
The “affordable” element is 35 per cent. A community room is located at street level.
The Catholic Club has been closed for some years.
You may notice there’s no cycle lane on the road.
Removing the central reservation would permit additional space for a lane. Not the best idea to locate lighting columns there.
The proposal would see a loading bay on Beresford Street impacting any future cycle lane.
Much as seen nearby outside Berkeley Homes’ towers.
The building tops out at 14 floors with a terrace proposed at the ninth floor.
It’s the latest of many projects in the area that makes no account of plugging the cycle lane gap. Cyclists are expected to take detours along the Thames Path rather than direct routes.
All these sites feature much cycle parking but lack plans for how residents will utilise cycles given a lack of provision and streetscape changes to create new cycle lanes to tie into existing networks.
The Planning Statement included within the application mentions contributions to GLLaB but not public realm.
Another development that ignores encouraging cycling despite yet another Greenwich Council report being adopted last week on doing just that?
It mentions a “Cycle Promotion Plan” but no money for actual improvements.
Greenwich Planners could change that before a final agreement is reached. They’ve ignored Greenwich reports for years. Will they continue by ignoring the new Carbon Reduction report?
We’ll find out when it comes before the Planning Board.
The building would be located near listed buildings on the Arsenal site, though Historic England have raised no concerns according to the Design and Access Statement.
The full planning application can be viewed on Greenwich Council’s Planning Portal here.
I think providing student accomodation is a good use of this development. However, rather than students having to share kitchens and bathroom now that we are seeing more variants of viruses on top of the normal winter viruses.
I personally think the student accommodation would be better as individual bedsits with their own small shower room and kitchen. To socalise with other students they could have a large common space on the top floor with the terrace.
I appreciate ths may have to see the number of rooms reduced from 298 to allow rooms to be bigger to incorporate the shower room and kitchen space. But this would provide students with better quality self contained accomodation and give students their own personal space and allow students to social distance if required.
I cycle along that road daily due to the alternative (thames path) still being partially blocked by the Ferry ( 12 months supposedly from December 19 – do the math) and its terrifying. Only Tower Bridge is has less provision for cyclists. Utter shambles by Greenwich Council.
I agree self contained bedsits for students would be better than rooms with shared kitchen and bathrooms. It will give students more privacy and security.