Saturday 5th December 2009 presented a rare opportunity to visit the Convoys Wharf site in Deptford and a small group of us took a stroll around this huge site. Site owners Hutchison Whampoa are intending to amend the current planning application in January 2010 and Saturday was a chance to see the new proposals. Contrary to what some people believe the previous proposals were never formally approved and no Planning Permission was ever granted.
Henry VII originally purchased the site in the late 15th century and his son Henry VIII opened his Royal Dockyard there in 1513. Construction of vessels for the Royal Navy continued until 1869 and then from 1871 until the First World War it was the location for the City Corporation's Foreign Cattle Market. Over 4 million live sheep and cattle were landed and slaughtered on site.
After the war the site lay unused until a director of the News of the World leased part of the site for importing newsprint in 1923. The entire site eventually came into the ownership of News International who continued to import paper until early 2000. News sold the site last year to Hutchison Whampoa for approximately half the price that had been agreed in 2005.
The exhibition and tours take place again on Tuesday 8th December between 2.00 - 8.00pm. Go to the north end of New King Street. Before or after the tour you can stop for a pint or two at the Dog and Bell in Prince Street near the corner with Watergate Street.
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When I went to the exhibition for the last planning application the plan (as I recall it) was to extend Deptford High St & New King St all the way to the river with shops and restaurants along the this new High St and residential behind and some public space where the High St meets the river.
ReplyDeleteSpace was identified for a new primary and secondary school as well I think. It didn't seem too bad in principal.
Social housing was in tower blocks carefully positioned so that if you stood on Greenwich Park the new blocks would line up with the existing Pepys blocks so the view of St Pauls would be no worse than now.
The big discussion was about what to do with the river frontage - a public square? A wharf (but how would deliveries get there?) a boatyard? A terminal for cruise liners? a shuttle service accross to Canary wharf? a cable car to Canary wharf?
Wonder what has changed in the new scheme?
Have been using the amazing Birds Eye view for months now without realising that by the time you face East, Borthwick Wharf has been demolished! I wonder is there anyway of saving these incredible images before so much changes in Convoy's?
ReplyDeleteI am not aware of how Google Earth and other views might be systematically saved. I would presume that Google will eventually have a 'look back' feature, but until then it is screensaves of individual images.
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