Essex Place Development Poised to Go Ahead
Council planners dismiss residents' objections to four-storey scheme
A visualisation of the new building by the entrance to Sainsbury's
September 7, 2024
A new development in the heart of Chiswick looks poised to proceed after council planners recommended approval.
The design for a new four-story building at 8 Essex Place opposite the entrance to Sainsbury’s was first drawn up in 2017 and, despite being given approval, the applicant never proceeded with the project.
The proposal includes three storeys of residential accommodation above commercial premises on the ground floor. There would be 4 two-bedroom flats and 2 one bedroom with 209sqm of commercial space.
The building would be of a contemporary design with London Stock brick and zinc roofing and would replace an existing two storey detached building and two lean-to type structures made of brick and timber which the application describes as being in a poor state of repair.
Having resubmitted the plan (P/2024/1070), there were some objections from neighbours who said it would cause them a loss of light and privacy, was not in keeping with the surroundings and represented an overdevelopment of the area.
In a report to be submitted to councillors on the borough planning committee, council planners concluded that the building would be appropriate in terms of its scale and design and would positively contribute to the character of the area. They said there would be no loss of light or overbearing presence.
The site, which backs on to numbers 388-394 Chiswick High Road, used to be the base of Gymboree Play & Music and has been used as centre for pottery themed parties.
The site where the new building would go
A property professional who specialises in the Chiswick area said, “The approval of this plan is another small piece of the jigsaw for the evolution of this area along with the completion of Empire House and the Chiswick Green development. The main event is the Sainsbury’s redevelopment which I believe is being delayed by issues with power supply rather than hesitancy from the supermarket company. The utility infrastructure is in place but there doesn’t seem to be the grid capacity for all the schemes planned for this part of west London. That’s why we are seeing smaller projects like this moving forward but not the larger schemes.”
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