London Mayor to have final say on rejected Norton Folgate development

Campaigners form a human chain around the Norton Folgate buildings earlier this year

The Mayor of London Boris Johnson is to decide himself whether controversial plans for the redevelopment of a Spitalfields conservation area should be approved.

The Mayor has called a public hearing to determine the Blossom Street scheme put forward by developers British Land comprising of 340,000 sq ft of new offices, shops and 40 apartments.

The application was thrown out by Tower Hamlets council against the advice of its own planning officers in July, following a high-profile campaign against the plans.

A spokesman for the Mayor of London said: “The Mayor has called in this development, which would create more office space in a designated opportunity area in Norton Folgate. He is aware of the heritage concerns raised by the borough and local residents and will now carry out a detailed planning assessment.”

Campaigners from the Spitalfields Trust, fighting a protracted 40-year battle against British Land proposals for the site, said they were “disappointed” that Boris Johnson had chosen to intervene.

Tim Whittaker said: “We are confident that when the Mayor looks at this case in more detail he will agree that the council’s decision to reject the scheme was correct – and based on sound planning grounds. We have planned for this eventuality, which is not unexpected. The battle continues.”

But Nigel Webb, Head of Developments at British Land said the Mayor’s intervention was welcome: “It is appropriate that he assesses a development in these circumstances to ensure all the arguments are properly considered.”

A previous British Land scheme, approved in 2011 but considered to be “worse” by many campaigners, could still be implemented on the Norton Folgate site but the developer hopes its more recent plans will be given the green light by the Mayor.

Webb said: “This is a heritage-led development in a Conservation Area which will integrate with and enhance its surroundings, at the same time as providing an environment in which the tech and creative sector can flourish and grow.”

English Heritage have written in support of the Blossom Street scheme, saying “change is necessary” to bring the historic buildings back into use.