Chiswick Tower Plans Leave Gunnersbury Station Future Unclear

More details published of proposed residential development

The developer's visualisation of the new development viewed from Chiswick High Road

July 9, 2024

The developer proposing to repurpose Chiswick Tower into residential accommodation and build houses on the car parks by Gunnersbury Station has provided more details about its plans.

The site was acquired earlier this year by a new owner, reported in the property industry press to be from the Middle East, and shortly afterwards it was announced that it intended to convert the 19-storey office block into 400 co-living apartments.

Now letters have been sent out to nearby residents with more information about the proposals although the name of the developer does not appear to have been disclosed nor does it appear on the consultation web site. Assael Architecture is handling the design.

The site is currently occupied by offices in the main Chiswick Tower, and a private commercial car park of 3-storeys with 190 spaces associated with the office tower located to the south of the main site either side of Gunnersbury Station.

Some sort of redevelopment of Chiswick Tower has long been anticipated and it was hoped that it would provide the opportunity for a much-needed upgrade of Gunnersbury station which has to be closed periodically due to excess demand.

It is not clear at this stage whether the scheme would require a full planning application for all its elements. The developer would need to submit for the houses and the annexe and it is understood that co-living apartments are not eligible for schemes under Permitted Development Rights although the council may be able to allow this in certain circumstances. We have asked for clarification on this issue.

A requirement for full planning permission across the scheme would give the council more leverage to get contributions from the developer including possible funding for public transport improvements.

Developer's visualisation of the new public plaza in front of the station

The developer does say that its plans will leave space to allow for step free access via a lift to Gunnersbury Station in the future while making no commitment to provide it within the proposal and the designs published as part of the consultation appear to rule out a second entrance for the station. The project web site says that a larger public plaza will be created at the front of the station and its capacity will be increased without specifying how.

Chiswick Tower viewed from across Gunnersbury Station

A new two-storey building would be added at the front of the Tower to replace the existing two-storey, curved structure. The new building would increase the width of the public station plaza and there would be a co-working space housed at ground floor. The scheme would require the removal of one of the four London planes at the front of the station.

Chiswick Tower viewed from Chiswick Business Park

The new plans would see the main tower reclad and converted into 400 co-living apartments which aim to provide more affordable accommodation by having communal facilities with a relatively small private living space. Each private room is fitted with an en-suite bathroom, double bed, small kitchen, table and chairs and a wall-mounted television.

On the Ground, 1st, 2nd, 9th and 18th floors, residents will have access to a number of amenity spaces including a ‘MasterChef’ style kitchen, lounges, a gym, a cinema room and bookable dining room, a self-serve bar and a co-working space. They will have shared use of outdoor terraces on the second and 18th floor.

It is also proposed to knock down the two-storey annex building facing the High Road and replace it with a nine-storey tower containing 32 one or two bedroom flats which would be classed as affordable.

The annex at the side of the main tower will be demolished and replaced with a nine storey tower

The developer says that despite a relatively recent refurbishment, Chiswick Tower is not fully let and the largest tenant, BSI, will soon be relocating to central London.

It argues that a conversion to co-living apartments would be a sustainable use of an existing building and bring 400 plus new residents to the area with a relatively high disposable income.

Around 28 town houses would be built on site of the car parks with 10 three bedroom houses of two to three storey on the west side of the platform nearer Chiswick Roundabout and 18 two storey four bedroom houses on the east side closer to Turnham Green. These also would be classed as affordable and have a garden and private terrace. The bridge that currently links the two car parks would be retained.

The developer's visualisation of the planned town houses

The houses will be accessed via a shared surface road that will provide also provide a route to and from Gunnersbury Station. The developer says that the design of the homes will take inspiration from details and materials found in the local context of the Wellesley Road Conservation Area.

An aerial view of the plan provide by the developer

Marie Rabouhans of the West Chiswick and Gunnersbury Society (WCGS) said, “WCGS will be studying the proposals on the developer's website in detail and we will be responding to the consultation and establishing a dialogue with the developer. Our focus will be on the well-established need to improve access and capacity at Gunnersbury Station, an issue on which the society has been campaigning for many years, and we will be considering the proposals from that perspective.

“Gunnersbury Station is of strategic importance to the development potential of the whole Borough of Hounslow, given that it acts as a transport hub, a railhead to the District Line and London Overground that provides interchange with bus services to a wide area, including along the Great West Corridor. Major enhancement to the station is needed now to accommodate the significant increase in usage over 20 years due to the development of the Chiswick Business Park (now 10,000 capacity), the Brentford Football Stadium and other significant developments in the area. We would encourage residents and businesses in Chiswick and Brentford to respond to the consultation and raise the need for upgrading this key element of public transport infrastructure.”

Planned access routes to Gunnersbury Station

Local councillor Joanna Biddolph said, "None of Chiswick's tube or train stations is accessible by disabled people so it is good to see that the developers are making space available for step-free access here. What about funding? When I met TfL at Gunnersbury station with our former GLA member Nick Rogers in September 2022, TfL estimated it would cost around £500,000 simply to move the waiting room along the platform to reduce congestion at the stairs. We need details about what is proposed, what it will cost and who will pay for it, to make sure it is achievable, not an empty promise to make a development more attractive. I will be meeting the developers soon to find out more and to emphasise what is important for Chiswick Gunnersbury ward residents, workers and visitors."

A series of consultation events for residents is being held with comments on these initial proposals accepted until 1 August.

Two online consultation events are being held at 1pm on Wednesday 17 July and 7pm on Thursday 18 July. You can register for these events here.

The current exercise is the first of two planned consultations on the scheme with a second one due to take place in the autumn. It is then proposed to submit a planning application towards the end of the year.