A new £500m vision for Woolston (From Daily Echo)

A new £500m vision for Woolston

1:35pm Friday 14th March 2008 in News By Echo Business

DEVELOPERS behind Southampton's flagship £500m Woolston Riverside project have boosted the number of homes by almost ten per cent and slashed the space available for businesses in half.

A five-year wait for a planning application for the former Vosper Thornycroft warship factory ended this week when developers Crest Nicholson and Dean & Dyball unveiled their interpretation of the stunning vision presented by world famous architect Richard Rogers.

Re-branded Centenary Quay, the new version has 1,653 flats and houses, up from the original plan for 1,510, prompting fears too many homes were being crammed onto the site.

Originally planned to create 1,000 jobs, site bosses predicted fierce competition amongst marine businesses to get a space in the development and make use of the old shipbuilders' deep-water quay.

Now the space available for marine business has been cut from nearly 40,000 square metres to just over 21,000 square metres.

Despite the dramatic reduction in space, developers claim the land will still support more than 1,000 jobs.

The decision was criticised by marine business consortium Marine South East, which said the move was designed to increase profits at the expense of the community.

MSE chief executive Jonathon Williams said: "This is a rare site. We want to safeguard sites like these for future wealth creation.

"I would say that the original plan for nearly 40,000 square feet was acceptable - not ideal, but at least it preserved part of the site for industrial uses. To go back on it now and virtually halve it is something we will be making strong representations about.

"I wouldn't say I'm surprised. For a developer it's a no-brainer. You get more profit from the site the more residential housing you can put on it. From the point of view of the local economy it is totally different. The local economy isn't interested in the short-term benefit to the developer, it is interested in long- term wealth creation.

"We need to see how this could be in the interests of the local or sub regional economy."

Marine South East is a group part funded by regional development agency SEEDA, which bought the old factory for £15m when VT relocated to Portsmouth and commissioned the original masterplan.

As well as the homes and jobs, the plan envisages a 100-bed hotel, a supermarket, shops, bars, healthcare, open space and a library being built on the 31 acres.

Andrew Middleton, a spokesman for the Woolston Community Association, predicted opposition to the scale of development.

"They are forever increasing the number of dwellings. The density is far too high," he said.

"It's going to cause terrible problems with parking because there will be too many people crammed into a small space."

Local councillors were also worried by the changes.

Labour Woolston councillor Warwick Payne said: "I'm disappointed that it is looking likely there will be fewer jobs provided than were originally planned. Woolston needs skilled jobs to replace those lost when VT closed. Reducing the amount of land available for employment on the site is not going to help.

"Some residents had already expressed views about the number of homes proposed so the fact that there are now more on the table isn't going to go down well. If we go too far then rather than having 1,500 reasonably good homes on the site we could be left with a scheme with hundreds of homes that are very poor quality."

"It was already looking as if it was getting to the limit of how far they could go. However we do need to get moving on this project. We can't afford to have the site sitting derelict year after year."

Tory Councillor Royston Smith, opposition spokes-man for economic development, said: "The point was to make sure maritime employment was high on the list. If they've halved the floor space for that then it's very disappointing.

"It's not quite the way it was in the Richard Rogers vision. For what it needs to achieve I suppose it's adequate. It's not going to give us a wow factor."

Woolston ward councillor Richard Williams, also cabinet member for environment and sustainability, said: "We have to be sensitive about the number of units and what the need for that extra 100 is. It's almost an extra ten per cent. I would like to see more justification."

Cllr Williams also had concerns about the reduction in marine employment space and "proper skilled employment."

"I think it's a disappointing to put it mildly. The area needs services like supermarkets and stores but that was a marine employment site."

The information given to residents could also have been better, he said.

"I would like to have seen more communication over the past couple of years. Things have come out in dribs and drabs."

David Farr, a long-time Woolston resident and retired marine businessman who has campaigned for better waterfront access across the city, said he was disappointed there was be no waterside walkway on the commercial section of the site nor in front of the three proposed tower blocks.

"All they are interested in is having expensive flats on the water front with no public access," he said.

Deborah Aplin, managing director of Crest Nicholson Regeneration, said: "South-ampton's new waterfront will create a rich mix of places for the whole community to enjoy a new civic square, public gardens and a riverside walk. We're working closely with the council to provide a scheme that meets the needs of the community and will continue to liaise with them on a regular basis."

A spokesman for the Richard Rogers Partnership said it was not their policy to comment.