Ebbsfleet Garden City #1 by 3Fox

E BB S F L E E T G A RDE N C I T Y

Summer 2016

Issue 1

GA R D E N C I TY

FULL SPEED Creating a new garden city in the Garden of England

S U MME R 2016 I S S UE 1

C ONNE C T I VI T Y

C O MME RC E

C O MMUNI T Y

London, Paris, Brussels – the high-speed train arrived before Ebbsfleet was built

Bluewater’s established success – and London Paramount’s huge ambition

Homes, schools, shopping and leisure – from development sites to town

VERY REDROW

THE DESTINATION TO BE

EBBSFLEET GREEN A

THE

NEW COMMUNITY BY

REDROW HOMES SOUTH EAST

PERFECT COMBINATION BETWEEN TOWN AND COUNTRY

• Up

to 950 new homes, from one bed apartments to five bedroom houses • A new primary school • 30% new green space - a new park, sports pitches, tennis courts and allotments • A local shop, community hall and hotel/pub and restaurant • A contribution of around £16 million towards local facilities, transport, health and education provision • Up to 30% affordable housing • High speed connections to London and Europe minutes to St Pancras from Ebbsfleet International Station • 1 hour 41 minutes to Brussels • 11 minutes to Stratford • 40 miles to Stansted • Excellent road connection to the A2/M2 and M25 • 17

SUBJECT TO PLANNING PERMISSION

Visit: ebbsfleetgreen.com Call: 01634 899850

Welcome to your new home

M25

Land Securities in partnership with Ward Homes, Persimmon, Circle and more to be announced are creating 1,125 private homes & 375 affordable homes at Castle Hill. Land Securities will also provide a primary school, country park & a fast track pathway to Ebbsfleet International station where you can be in London in 18 mins or Paris in 2hrs 5 mins.

M11 M1 Kingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Cross St Pancras International

Stratford International

M25

M4 Ebbsfleet International

London A2

For more information please visit our website: ebbsfleetvalley.co.uk

Dartford

M20 M20 M25

M23 London Gatwick

M26

EBBSF LE ET SUM M E R 2016

CONTENTS 06–07 News Update on investment and regeneration schemes around Ebbsfleet

24–25

Connectivity International trains run before Ebbsfleet walks

10–13 Masterplan The vision for Ebbsfleet Garden City will be underpinned by a robust masterplan

14–20 Key player interviews With Ebbsfleet Development Corporation chairman Michael Cassidy and local politicians

22–23 Lifestyle New towns have potential to be healthier, as a government scheme sets out to show

34–36

Investment London Paramount team aims to establish a worldclass attraction

26–27 Map

40–41 Facts and figures

Ebbsfleet’s opportunity sites and geographical location

How big, how fast, how much? A snapshot in numbers

28–31 Projects

43–45 Retail

The areas where a series of villages are forming

The success of Bluewater signals massive potential for the new garden city

38–39 Community With support from Countryside and Land Securities, Eastgate provides a new centre at the heart of the community

46 Heritage Northfleet’s 19th century architecture offers ideas for new developments in Ebbsfleet

Editorial director Siobhán Crozier Head of design Rachael Schofield Design Kate Monument Assistant editor James Wood Reporter Marco Cillario Production assistant Christopher Hazeldine Business development director Paul Gussar Business development manager Harry Seal Project manager Sue Mapara Subscriptions manager Simon Maxwell Managing director Toby Fox Cover image: E320 Cabin interior by Eurostar Images Libi Pedder, Ward Homes, Aardman Animations, Lee Evans Partnership, Shutterstock/Tyler Olson, Shutterstock/B and E Dudzinscy, London Paramount, Land Securities, Alan Duncan, Ebbsfleet Development Corporation, Redrow, Countryside, Shutterstock/Monkey Business Images, iStock/Pamela Moore, Shutterstock/Kao-Ien, Shutterstock/S-F, iStock/vichie81, © Paramount Pictures, The Imageworks Printed by Park Communications Published by 3Fox International, London SE1 7SJ, 020 7978 6840, 3foxinternational.com Subscriptions & feedback ebbsfleetgardencity.co.uk © 2016 3Fox International Limited. All material is strictly copyright and all rights are reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without the written permission of 3Fox International Ltd is strictly forbidden. The greatest care has been taken to ensure the accuracy of information in this magazine at time of going to press, but we accept no responsibility for omissions or errors. The views expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of 3Fox International Ltd.

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EBBS FLEETGARDENCI TY .CO.UK I N B RIEF

EDC CHAIRMAN SE TS OU T COLL ABORATIVE APPROACH

PRIMARY SCHOOL GRANTED APPROVAL Planning permission has been granted for the first primary school to be built as part of major development in Ebbsfleet Garden City. Cherry Orchard Primary Academy will provide places for 420 pupils in Castle Hill and is due to open in September 2017. There will also be space for 26 nursery children and another 15 pupils

who have special needs. The facility will be run by Leigh Academies Trust, which has six secondary and six primary schools, as well as one special needs school. There are further proposals in the masterplan for three new primary schools and a secondary school. The Ebbsfleet planning committee met in March 2016 to

approve plans lodged by Land Securities, which also wants to build sports pitches, play areas and a village square. Chairman of EDC’s Planning Committee, David Lock, said: “Not only will the school and community centre be the focus of a new neighbourhood in Castle Hill but it will also provide much-needed school places for the area.”

The chairman of Ebbsfleet Garden City, Michael Cassidy CBE, has spoken of the importance of engaging with neighbouring local authorities in the area. “I think it’s terribly important to have the two adjoining boroughs [Gravesham and Dartford] feel that we’re part of their wider community,” Cassidy told Ebbsfleet Garden City magazine. “We’ve got the local authorities joined in at the heart of what we’re doing. There is a fully co-operative spirit.” To read the full interview with Michael Cassidy, see page 14.

C ONS E N T F OR DAVID WIL S ON H O ME S Approval for 154 homes at Ebbsfleet Garden City has been given for a David Wilson Homes development in Castle Hill, Eastern Quarry. Countryside returns to Springhead Park for the first time in four years and has started groundwork for 123 homes in the second phase of its development. Redrow is on-site to build 180 homes at its Ebbsfleet Green development, with the first showhome almost complete. Charles Church

has also started groundworks for its phase of 170 units. Paul Spooner, interim chief executive at Ebbsfleet Development Corporation, said: “Permission for David Wilson Homes is a fantastic contribution to the continuing growth of the garden city. With another three developers already carrying out groundwork, we are seeing real momentum in the pace at which new homes will be delivered.”

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NEWS F EATURE

IN T E RIM C HIE F E X E C U T I VE A P P OIN T E D

2017 FOR LONDON PARAMOUNT APPLICATION A planning application for the London Paramount entertainment resort is now proposed for submission in summer 2017. The £2.3 billion attraction earmarked for the Swanscombe Peninsula between Gravesend and Dartford could feature a theatre, cinema, music clubs, hotels, shops, cafes,

restaurants, bars and up to 210,000sq m of indoor and outdoor space for events. Plans were originally due for submission in summer 2015, but were pushed back a year until 2016. Steve Norris, chairman of London Resort Company Holdings, the company bringing forward the project, told Property Week the plans would now not be submitted until the second quarter of 2017. “We do regular appraisals to make sure that when we’re entering pretty new territory, which is what London Paramount is, we’ve got everything right,” said Norris. “And as a result of that, we’ve adjusted our plan.”

NEW INVESTOR BUYS TWO THIRDS OF EASTERN QUARRY FROM LAND SEC

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Ebbsfleet Development Corporation has appointed Paul Spooner as its interim chief executive, with the remit to steer delivery on Ebbsfleet Garden City. Spooner has held wideranging roles, including acting as an adviser to the government on enterprise zones, being executive director at the Homes and Communities Agency and helping Maidstone Borough Council implement elements of its town planning. Since being appointed, Spooner has been aiming to get the process moving to install utilities in the Eastern Quarry, as elements of the masterplan develop. “We are trying to create a comprehensive utility corridor for water, gas, telecoms and to accelerate housing development here,” Spooner told Kent Online. “There is huge potential to secure significant growth for north Kent,” he added. The government pledged £310 million funding for the project in the autumn statement of November 2015.

Land Securities has announced major deals at Ebbsfleet Garden City, paving the way for the delivery of 4,700 new homes. In Eastern Quarry, the developer has sold two thirds of its land to Henley Camland, a joint venture between Henley Investments and infrastructure company Camland. As well as residential, the land has capacity for leisure and commercial development, with an estimated value of £1.5 billion, according to Henley Investments. The joint venture now intends to invest around £200 million to

DESIGNING A HEALTHIER GARDEN CITY Ebbsfleet Garden City has been designated by NHS England as a healthy new town, one of 10 developments around the country to take a radical approach to improving the health of residents through the built environment. The Healthy New Towns programme will be led locally by the Dartford, Gravesham and Swanley Clinical Commissioning Group. Green spaces and leisure facilities will be developed alongside active transport links, integrated cycle paths and walking routes. For further details, see feature on page 22.

deliver the infrastructure before selling sites to housebuilders. In the remaining third of the site, Land Securities has exchanged contracts with Taylor Wimpey for the sale of 539 plots at Castle Hill, bringing the total number of committed properties to 1,500. In a joint venture with Lafarge Building Materials and Anglo American International Holdings, Land Securities has completed the sale of Springhead Park to Countryside. It has built 300 homes on the site and will progress with an additional 500 units.

www.londonparamount.info paramountresort londonparamount

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HOMES AND GARDENS

With a masterplan soon to be published for the first garden city in over 100 years, Ebbsfleet offers opportunity and challenge in equal portions â&#x20AC;&#x201C; and devising the right plan is vital for delivering the vision

BY PA ME L A B U X T ON

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“THE GARDEN CITY IS A LEAP OF FAITH. IT TAKES A LOT OF VISIONING” S IMON H A RRI S ON E BB S F L E E T DE VE LOP ME N T C ORP OR AT I ON

Eastern Quarry

Ebbsfleet Green

Ebbsfleet Valley

Swanscombe Peninsula

Northfleet Embankment West

Northfleet Embankment East

Springhead Park

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he biggest development opportunity in the country is Ebbsfleet Garden City in north Kent. Within 1,026ha, some 15,000 homes are envisaged, along with 5.5 million square feet of commercial space and two million square feet of retail, leisure and community facilities. How can all of this be shaped into a successful place where people will want to live and work? And how can this significantly brownfield area incorporate the green infrastructure required for a 21st century garden city? These are the challenges facing AECOM, which has been appointed to create a communityled masterplan for the new city by Ebbsfleet Development Corporation (EDC). AECOM, which led the masterplanning for the 2012 Olympic Park, has already held consultations with local residents. Later in the year, the EDC will set out the overall vision for the new garden city and the strategy to deliver it, including essential enabling infrastructure and a cohesive, co-ordinating framework to support the disparate ongoing and future development. “The garden city is a leap of faith. It takes a lot of visioning,” says Simon Harrison, head of design at Ebbsfleet Development Corporation, who has been centrally involved in the process of developing 11

N EW GARDEN C ITY M ASTERPLAN

HS1 connectivity —

trains from Ebbsfleet International reach London St Pancras in just 17 minutes and Lille in one hour and 15 minutes.

the masterplan for the vast project that will create the new garden city. “We’re in the business of transformation, looking at problems and coming up with solutions in partnership with the private sector so that, in 20 years’ time, it will be a very different place. It’s about creating a place where people can live, work, go shopping, and go to the theatre rather than being a dormitory town to London.” For now, only several hundred of the 11,000 homes granted planning permission have been completed. Both Harrison and AECOM agree that the time is right for the long-mooted regeneration to take off in the area. Ebbsfleet International station opened in 2007 but the recession snuffed out hopes of immediate knock-on regeneration. However, this is now firmly back on the agenda, following the establishment of Ebbsfleet Development Corporation and a government commitment to invest £310 million in the city, coupled with much-improved market conditions. AECOM’s vision will enable the disparate, privately funded initiatives for the area to be co-ordinated within a comprehensive, cohesive strategy for the first time. According to AECOM project manager Tom Venables, the new masterplan will “reboot” regeneration by “creating an amazing landscape that connects the places together” to give the right balance of infrastructure, development and open space. Crucially, it will be the first strategy to consider Ebbsfleet as a place in its own right.

“It’s about creating a place where people can live, work, go shopping, and go to the theatre, rather than being a dormitory town to London” T O M VE N A BL E S, A E C O M P RO JE C T M A N AGE R 12

AECOM will be assisted on the masterplan by architects Maccreanor Lavington, the only practice to have won the Stirling Prize for a residential development, and landscape architects Spacehub. It is a huge task. “The challenges are massive in terms of co-ordination and creating places that deal with the complex topography,” says Harrison. In its initial baseline masterplan, AECOM identified seven distinct development areas within the Ebbsfleet Garden City site, some of which already have established communities. These range from the Swanscombe Peninsula marshland and former industrial Northfleet embankments along the Thames. In between these are the Eastern Quarry site, Ebbsfleet Green and Ebbsfleet Valley, which is home to the international rail station. Already, 16,590 people live within the garden city boundaries – this population is expected to double by 2031. “It’s not about creating a town from scratch but making sure you create a really good-quality place between these communities,” says Venables. A key issue is the nature of the landscape – centuries of quarrying have created topography with large depressions that disrupt links across the garden city site. Another challenge is that the local road network is poor, although regional road links are good. The detailed masterplan will consider ways of linking the distinct places into a whole, while encompassing areas of different character. “One of the challenges is how to stitch the landscape together to create this garden city environment that people will flock to live and work in,” says Harrison. One way of doing this is by the green infrastructure that will define the new Ebbsfleet as a garden city – the first in Britain for more than 100 years. The Ebbsfleet masterplan will propose a green orbital S U MMER

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N EW GA RDE N CITY M ASTE RPLA N

“It’s quite a dramatic and attractive landscape with amazing views ... If the design is right, it could be a real selling point for the new communities” T O M VE N A BL E S, A E C O M

Changing vista —

The masterplan sets out the EDC’s aim to maximise the area’s natural assets of water and varied landscapes.

park connecting all the existing green spaces and with links to the wider Thames landscape. Defined cycle and walking routes through the city will connect these disparate development sites and ensure that all those living and working in the city will have access to the verdant park system. As well as this green infrastructure, the masterplan will set out other public enabling works required to nurture regeneration and shape the new city. These include a crucial upgrade of the sewage system to cope with the garden city development, and investment in cabling to provide highspeed broadband. A site will be identified for a new electricity substation that is required. The masterplan will also consider ways of boosting the local public transport network. An important role of the masterplan will be to identify areas of strategic development within the new Ebbsfleet city area. This will, according to AECOM, help kickstart private investment in the right places and help shape the different characteristics of the garden city. Housing demand is high and the time is now ripe for commercial development. The area’s enterprise zone status should also be an asset in attracting development to create vital employment opportunities within the area. “Proposals before were perhaps a bit too early for the market and people’s perceptions. We want to make sure that we create a town that stands up on its own. We don’t want people just commuting to London but commuting to Ebbsfleet,” says Venables. The masterplan will help set the tone for the character of the garden city’s architecture, which Wyman envisages as progressive and modern. Commercial development opportunities will be particularly encouraged in the area around Ebbsfleet station, which boasts high-speed rail services that take 17 minutes to reach St Pancras in central London and an hour and a quarter to Lille in France. EBB SF L EE T

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Home front —

Ebbsfleet is envisaged as a series of villages - but not in the traditional sense, as contemporary design will be a feature. In particular, the neighbourhood which will evolve around the international station has the potential for more dense urban architecture, with riverside and lakeside developments at Northfleet and Ebbsfleet Quarry.

Here, the masterplan will encourage denser development with more of a city-centre, urban feel. This will contrast with waterside areas such as the Northfleet embankments, which the masterplan will envisage as having quite a different character that makes the most of the wide, open views across the Thames. While the area contains a lot of green space, housing densities are likely to be higher than those found in traditional garden cities. The masterplan will deliver a variety of densities and typologies and encourage developers to make the most of the design potential offered by the unusual topography. This is especially the case at sites such as Eastern Quarry, which includes several lakes and has been identified as an area of housing potential, with scope for hillside, lakeside and floating homes. “It’s quite a dramatic and attractive landscape with amazing views … If the design is right, it could be a real selling point for the new communities,” says Venables. The masterplan work will involve co-ordination with local councils to review locations already identified for new schools, health centres and other community facilities to ensure that, for the first time, the disparate areas are thought of as a whole. A key challenge will be channelling the potential of proposed private development opportunities, such as the 750,000sq m London Paramount leisure resort mooted for the Swanscombe peninsula, to ensure they complement the overall garden city vision. With the 15,000 proposed homes likely to take up to 20 years to complete, it will be decades – if not longer – before the success of Ebbsfleet Garden City and its masterplan can truly be measured, thinks Venables. “Places evolve over decades and centuries. By providing a joined-up approach to landscape and utilities and putting in the anchor of the city centre, you’re sowing the seeds of what will become a more joined-up place,” he says. 13

L EADER BOARD KEY PLAYER INTERV I EW

HOME LAND When Canary Wharf developers threw down a gauntlet to the City of London Corporation, promising to take the banks east, the Cityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s planning chairman decided to thwart them. The skyline changed: a gherkin appeared, then a cheesegrater and a walkie-talkie. Now Michael Cassidy CBE has transformation in mind again and talks to Toby Fox about the vision for a thriving garden city rising from Ebbsfleetâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s wastelands 14

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I HOPE TO AUGMENT WHAT WE’VE GOT FROM THE TREASURY FOR THE NEXT FIVE YEARS, WITH ADDITIONAL SOURCES OF FUNDING, TO ENLARGE OUR EFFORT AND OUR IMPACT

MC: Michael Cassidy CBE, (above), chairman of Ebbsfleet Development Corporation TF: Toby Fox, managing director of 3Fox International, publisher of Ebbsfleet Garden City magazine

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TF: As chairman of this powerful Ebbsfleet Development Corporation, you interact with investors, local and national government, and communities on the patch. How does this differ from your experience in the City? MC: In the late ‘80s, as planning chairman in the City, the focus was international business. Canary Wharf was a rival – Wall Street on water – they were going to take all the banks. I was determined to make sure it didn’t happen. My sole focus, with planning officer Peter Rees, was to make the City more flexible, bigger floor plates, finding new land over railways, over roads, that hadn’t been developed before, so that these much bigger financial buildings could fit in. The planning context was very different to Ebbsfleet – a very active planning committee, many of whom were against policy changes – but those changes resulted in what you see today, this great cluster of world-class buildings. Coming to similarities, the most useful pattern between the City and Ebbsfleet has been the necessity of co-operating with surrounding boroughs. TF: That’s about finding a win-win situation? MC: And clever use of resources, frankly, using what money you’re given to get the extra bang for your buck. I hope to augment the £310 million from the Treasury for the next five years with additional sources of funding, to enlarge our effort and our impact. It means deliberate co-operation with Gravesham and Dartford, as our neighbours. That’s terribly important, to have the two adjoining boroughs feel that we’re part of their wider community. TF: Why is that important? MC: You don’t want hostility 100 yards down

the road, just because they’re outside the area that has suddenly got all this money. Both Jeremy Kite [leader of Dartford, page 18] and John Cubitt from Gravesham [page 20] are on our board and Kent County Council is represented by Mark Dance [page 19]. The local authorities are at the heart of what we’re doing. Then there’s the commercial imperative; we’re keen to balance this community, to provide jobs alongside village-based housing. We’ll develop a commercial cluster by the station and we’ve got enterprise zone status, so we can offer financial incentives. TF: There’s a focus on supplying high quality homes in mixed tenures? MC: We have a design code, which is indicative, we can’t insist on it, but the housebuilders are working towards it, but we’re going to have to up the game. We can rejig the Section 106 obligations if we feel inclined, to make that slightly easier. In return, they must provide higher quality units. We can help with building the infrastructure; we might shoulder utility costs, so they save an amount that they can put into the build quality. In those two direct ways, we can make an immediate impact. TF: How are you approaching tenures? MC: We would like to broaden the mix at Ebbsfleet. At the moment, it’s all owneroccupied, there’s no rental or shared equity, no self-build – all of which we’d like. TF: How are developers reacting to these proposals on quality? MC: As an immediate win, we want them to speed up delivery – can they open three marketing sites, rather than one or two? And they’re responding because the market is very strong. They tend to only hold offers open for six months, mortgage companies tend to limit their promise to six months. I want to persuade them to make that 12, meaning we can nearly double the rate of building. A longer queue of hopeful buyers gives the builder confidence to go ahead. TF: Are you able to influence mortgage provision at all? MC: We’re talking to the largest mortgage providers about how we can help them towards this 12-month promise. There’s no uncertainty on planning and we’re going to put hundreds of millions into utilities. In this market, it’s not a big risk for them to say, we’ll hold this promise for 12 months. 15

L EADER BOARD KEY PLAYER INTERV I EW

What could Ebbsfleet Garden City look like? Echoes of a

Kentish village characterise the successful development of Kings Hill in the borough of Tonbridge and Malling, illustrating the potential for developments around Ebbsfleet.

DARTFORD IS THE MOST POPULAR NEW-BUILD LOCATION OUTSIDE LONDON, BECAUSE OUR HOUSES ARE £300,000 NOT £700,000

TF: And which of the developers are opening additional showrooms? MC: Redrow are the most enthusiastic in terms of quality – we can easily see 900 units in the first 12 months or so. Land Securities are diversifying their patch, by bringing in Henley Camland and Taylor Wimpey. They’ll push ahead quickly, with this queue of people wanting to buy there. Ward Homes are under way, and Persimmon. Countryside is right on our central area and ready to go on-site for the second phase; they’re up to 290 already. TF: There remains this general doubt – the whole scheme has been around for a long time and nothing much has happened? MC: The biggest obstacle was the recession, which is why nothing happened after HS1, eight years ago. There’s nothing like a good market to promote development. Redrow has a queue, the money’s there, the mortgages are there, and the push out of London – because of prices – only benefits us. A national survey showed that Dartford was the most popular new-build location outside London, because our houses are £300,000 not £700,000. TF: What three things do you highlight as the most crucial aspects, to keep accelerating the pace of development? MC: Collaboration is first. We’ll invest in infrastructure and provide a utility corridor. Since Bluewater was taken over by Land Sec, any question of them going away has

disappeared, they’re there for the long term, so we have good co-operation with Britain’s biggest property company. We’ve been seeing people like Crest Nicholson – the sort of developer we want to attract. We’d like to see some off-site manufacturing of housing elements, to speed up the quantity of delivery. We’ll focus on the promotion of Ebbsfleet through branding and advertising, seminars, a much stronger website and spreading the word more intensively within the local community. TF: Is there anywhere else that you might emulate or that might be considered a benchmark? MC: I tried to make the case to the House of Lords built environment committee that each site has unique features, we don’t want another Welwyn Garden City or Stevenage. AECOM has just finished our masterplan, which will illustrate possible densities, building up to a bigger cluster at the heart of it. It’s got to have a Kent element. Kings Hill, over in Tonbridge and Malling, is a very good model for a big village, it’s not really a town. The cluster of houses around the central green, the old airfield, is very clever, and the campus of offices, sprinkled in the woodland around it. For our first commercial venture, we’re in serious discussion about a medical research facility, which will train doctors and dentists. S U MMER

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It will also have a care home attached to it – and it will be a research centre. We’ll put that in the enterprise zone, as it will attract some tax relief. TF: Have you got a developer for that? MC: We have a promoter, who is talking to Dartford Hospital. It will provide brand new accommodation and training, a mini college with about 100 medical students a year. I’m also looking seriously at Rod Aldridge’s [former head of Capita] academy proposal for a school for entrepreneurs. It would take about 900 students aged 11 to 19, but 20% or more of their learning will be in establishing an actual company. Around the school, we hope to get a cluster of startup IT businesses. TF: What other initiatives are in the pipeline to contribute to economic development? MC: For the AECOM masterplan, Cushman and Wakefield did a comparison between Ebbsfleet and the West End commercial market. It shows where we have work to do but where we have natural advantages. This medical project will have a direct link to St Pancras and the Crick Centre, 17 minutes from Ebbsfleet. We have to make inroads in the central London market, to make agents and property people aware of our offer. TF: At the five-year midpoint in the life of the EDC, what will success look like? EBB SF L EE T

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WE’RE IN SERIOUS DISCUSSION ABOUT A MEDICAL RESEARCH FACILITY, TO TRAIN DOCTORS AND DENTISTS

MC: We’ll see 3,000 to 4,000 new homes – in the first 18 months we will be well on the way to the thousand mark. There will be a visible identity for the garden city, as well as a primary and secondary school, the village greens will be in place, as will the green corridors. TF: And the relationship with Paramount? MC: We want them to be successful but we’re pretty firm about our interests, which means we’re for some things and against other things. It’s productive – I see Steve Norris regularly, David Testa keeps in touch on a monthly basis. TF: Does anything else in your broad portfolio overlap with your vision for Ebbsfleet – I’m thinking of your work with classical music artists, at the arts management agency, Askonas Holt? MC: It gives me windows into occupiers who might look at Ebbsfleet seriously. I quite like the idea of trying to provide rehearsal space. With HS1, such a facility here is perfectly feasible – for orchestras, choruses, dancers – to gather for long hours of practice, without taking up space at Covent Garden or the Albert Hall. TF: Is a concert hall in your dreams? MC: Not at the moment – I’ve got to keep within the realms of the possible and some rehearsal space is a bigger likelihood than establishing a performance space. Paramount could change that – but let’s walk before we run. 17

L EADER BOARD KEY PLAYER INTERV I EW

O P P O RT UNI TY OV E RF LOW With a powerful development corporation on the doorstep, what is the role of the local authorities neighbouring Ebbsfleet?

What role does Dartford Council play in supporting the development of Ebbsfleet Garden City? Our biggest role is to make sure it fits with what already exists in Dartford, in terms of the architecture and characteristics of the place. You can’t build a successful community by leaving it solely to the developers to determine everything. We’re embedded in the heart of the Ebbsfleet Development Corporation (EDC) and for our residents, it’s crucial we oversee the sort of development that has direct benefits for them.

Councillor Jeremy Kite MBE Leader of Dartford Borough Council IN T E RVIE W BY JA ME S WO OD

What can your council do to promote economic development in the garden city? It would take some doing to deny the scale of opportunity that exists from an economic development point of view. We’re 16 minutes from London and two hours from the continent. This means growth is naturally inclined to develop here but we need to create the infrastructure, which is not yet at an acceptable level to support the scale of development planned. We need to apply a certain amount of pressure to central government to build the roads that people need and improve the public transport system. What three things do you think could contribute most successfully to the development of Ebbsfleet?

WE’RE IN THE HEART OF THE EDC AND FOR OUR RESIDENTS, IT’S CRUCIAL WE OVERSEE DEVELOPMENT THAT HAS DIRECT BENEFITS FOR THEM The infrastructure needs to be developed in a sensible and co-ordinated way. From an architectural point of view, I would prefer it if we received plaudits from residents rather than winning awards for what is perceived to be innovative or original design. What we clearly don’t want is for this to become some sort of laboratory for unnecessary experimentation. Thirdly, it’s important to realise the value of public space. Ebbsfleet is a fantastic place next to the river and we should only intervene where we need to and retain the natural way in which people choose to enjoy themselves. Can you point to an initiative your authority has achieved in regeneration that could be replicated in the new garden city? If you look at recent commercial developments like The Bridge or the redevelopment of Dartford Central Park, we have not gone for anything too modern. What we have done for the park is to look at the way people used to enjoy such spaces in Edwardian times. We’ve installed swings, bandstands and built a cafe – things that people really enjoy. Parks are massively important. It’s no coincidence that some of the most expensive real estate in the world is located in parks and the Central Park development is one we can be really proud of. S U MMER

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L EA DE R BOA R D K EY P LAY E R INTE RVIEW

Councillor Mark Dance Cabinet member for economic development at Kent County Council IN T E RVIE W BY S I OBH Á N C ROZ IE R

What is Kent County Council’s role in supporting the development of Ebbsfleet? Growth is not happening in isolation; Ebbsfleet is a major growth area and will have a fundamental impact on Kent’s wider economic potential and communities. We work with district councils to ensure a joinedup approach across north and wider Kent. I am the Kent County Council (KCC) representative on the Ebbsfleet Development Corporation (EDC) board, while Matthew Balfour, cabinet member for environment and transport, represents KCC on EDC’s planning committee. We understand north Kent’s strategic infrastructure needs and have pushed for cross-county investment, including the Lower Thames Crossing. With the EDC and other local authorities, we submitted a case to the National Infrastructure Commission for the extension of Crossrail to Gravesend. The Kent and Medway Growth and Infrastructure Framework identifies the infrastructure to support planned growth across Kent to 2031. How does KCC promote economic development in Ebbsfleet? KCC will work with EDC in attracting inward investors. Locate in Kent has helped 46 businesses commit to relocate or expand, creating or retaining 3,325 jobs, of which 2,397 result from overseas investment. Since February, KCC has committed over £55 million across three business finance schemes, via regional growth funding secured by the council in 2012. The TIGER scheme provided funding to north Kent and other parts of the county. TIGER is now closed, with all funding committed, but KCC seeks opportunities to provide finance to business in the critical growth stage – which should enable employment in and around Ebbsfleet. What will contribute vitally to development? There is a clear need for sufficient infrastructure to enable development at Ebbsfleet to happen at pace. Money is committed to providing infrastructure announced in the autumn statement, but this is one part of a much bigger growth area in the Thames Gateway. It is vital that the investment in and delivery of infrastructure at Ebbsfleet is co-ordinated with that of the wider growth area, and that the government commitment to this funding is robust. Critically, the new Lower Thames Crossing will need to be

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delivered in a way that complements the new development. However, further network improvements are needed to support the development at Ebbsfleet, and Highways England investment in improvements in and around Ebbsfleet will be vital. In addition, a commitment to quality design is clearly needed if aspirations for the garden city are to be fully realised. By quality, I refer not only to the design of the homes to be provided, but also the design of the communities created. There is a clear opportunity with Ebbsfleet to create truly exciting and sustainable communities, providing green spaces, opportunities for travel choices, and neighbourhoods which facilitate community interaction. Is there an initiative KCC has achieved that could be replicated in Ebbsfleet? At Kings Hill in West Malling, KCC enabled an award-winning, mixed-use development in a partnership involving KCC and Liberty Property Trust UK. [See pages 16 and 17.]

WE UNDERSTAND NORTH KENT’S STRATEGIC INFRASTRUCTURE NEEDS AND HAVE PUSHED FOR CROSSCOUNTY INVESTMENT The former second world war airfield is now home to more than 6,000 residents and 100 businesses, employing 5,000 people – creating over half a billion pounds of total value, attracting investment and promoting regional growth. KCC acquired the land and held a competition for developers to pitch ideas for generating economic growth – the winner was Liberty Property Trust UK (established 26 years ago and formerly Rouse Kent). Success was down to leadership by the joint venture in derisking sites and the commitment of partners to provide a high-quality but diverse housing layouts for a range of occupiers. Local infrastructure, such as schools and community facilities, rapidly enabled a sense of place. Derisking sites and providing infrastructure of all types can unlock housing delivery – all of which could be applied in Ebbsfleet. 19

L EADER BOARD KEY PLAYER INTERV I EW

GRAVESHAM COUNCIL REMAINS THE HOUSING AUTHORITY. WE HAVE A ROBUST UNDERSTANDING OF OUR LOCAL HOUSING MARKET AND NEEDS

Councillor John Cubitt Leader of Gravesham Borough Council IN T E RVIE W BY M A RC O C IL L A RI O

With a powerful development corporation on the patch, what role does Gravesham Borough Council play in supporting the development of Ebbsfleet Garden City? We act as a convener: communication is fundamental. I sit on the board of the Ebbsfleet Development Corporation (EDC), and we have helped it to build relationships with key partner organisations and our communities, as well as the council itself. We provide information and intelligence. Gravesham Council remains the housing authority. We have a robust understanding of our local housing market and local needs – sometimes those can be met by the market, but sometimes affordable housing is needed. Some planning powers transfer to the EDC but plan-making remains with us. The four sites within the garden city – two quarters at Ebbsfleet and the two Northfleet Embankment sites, west and east – are strategic allocations within our local plan core strategy, opportunity areas where high quality mixed-use developments are planned to deliver jobs and housing. We keep an eye on the future: while the creation of the EDC has been welcomed, the council is mindful of the place at year 11, as the corporation will only be around for five to 10 years. We are confident that, by working in partnership with the EDC, the developers, landowners and statutory providers of infrastructure, there will be a positive legacy for the borough’s residents and businesses. What three things does Gravesham most want to see from Ebbsfleet? Firstly, delivery of quality jobs. We want the

development to offer a choice to Gravesham residents who would prefer to work locally but currently commute to London or elsewhere. Then, housing – significant quantities are already proposed but we recognise that, with improved viability, more could be delivered in the garden city than is currently planned. We expect a mixed offer with a range of tenures, accessible to local people, as well as those moving to the area. Finally, a timely and effective infrastructure provision. Concerns over infrastructure pressures are the key reason that people are afraid of growth. Is there a Gravesham regeneration initiative that could be replicated in Ebbsfleet? There are several, such as the Town Pier and Pontoon – restoration of the oldest cast iron pier in the world with a new pontoon providing access for a range of river craft, barges and paddle steamers. Or White Hart Yard – transformation of a run-down area of Gravesend High Street into a multi awardwinning development with a design which took into account both the local context and the area’s residential and commercial needs.

Strategic allocations —

The Northfleet Embankment sites, east and west, are within Gravesham Council’s local plan core strategy. S U MMER

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The bigger we think today... the better we can make tomorrow Tarmac’s interest in Ebbsfleet is as old as the area’s rich industrial heritage. It’s the birthplace of the UK’s cement industry. As part of our commitment to Ebbsfleet, we are proud to be supporting plans that could transform this former industrial site into a vibrant new community with modern energy efficient housing and business premises, green open spaces, parkland and nature-rich conservation areas. Our aim is to create a positive, lasting legacy. Constructive thinking. Tarmac TARMAC.COM 0800 1 218 218

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H EA LTHY NEW TOW NS L I FESTYLE

IN GOOD H EALTH Ebbsfleet Garden City has been awarded “healthy new town” status by NHS England, with measures to be introduced to reduce obesity, help people who have dementia and encourage healthier choices across the population BY JA ME S WO OD

The healthy new towns scheme aims to offer support to people who have dementia, as well as encouraging community cohesion 22

Freewheelin’ — part of NHS England’s healthy new towns initiative includes plans to improve cycling provision.

he challenge to build enough homes to meet growing demand is one of the biggest facing the UK. Creating communities in which people live happily and healthily can be secondary to this, as the government faces pressure to deal with demand across the market in all tenures. It is difficult to change established habits when the burger bar and sweetshop are next to the school entrance – but the creation of new places opens opportunities to tackle health issues alongside housing. In February 2016, it was announced that Ebbsfleet Garden City, where 15,000 homes are planned, is to become one of 10 participants nationally in the healthy new towns project. Public body NHS England received an unprecedented 114 expressions of interests for its initiative in September 2015 – according to a spokesperson, around 30 were expected. The scheme will focus on areas of the country where a substantial number of homes are being built, introducing a range of measures to help people live healthier lives. So what steps will be taken to encourage healthier living and how will they be implemented? Generally, the scheme promises to tackle conditions where the NHS is facing significant challenges; obesity and dementia are crucial examples. According to government statistics, one in S U MMER

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H EA LT HY NEW TOWNS LIF ESTYLE

The challenge is that we need a lot more staff to deal with large levels of demand. That’s about how we stop people [healthcare professionals] going to London for work S U X AVIE R, P UBL I C HE A LT H A DVI S E R

10 five-year-olds were classed as overweight between 2014 and 2015; the ratio rises to one in five for children aged 11 during the same time period. A critical design question when establishing the scheme explains how creating adventure areas encourages kids to walk and play – it asks why children are happy to walk all day around a theme park but often get bored on the everyday journeys. NHS England acknowledges the scale of the challenge. According to Design Council figures, 21% of children play outdoors today compared with 71% of their parents when they were young. In the age of smart phones and the internet, the task to encourage people to adopt healthier lifestyles is difficult, but one that NHS England says it is prioritising. When naming the 10 chosen healthy towns in a speech to the King’s Fund in March, its chief executive, Simon Stevens, said: “We want children to have places where they want to play with friends and can safely walk or cycle to school – rather than just exercising their fingers on video games.” According to planning blueprints for Ebbsfleet Garden City, each section of the development will have its own primary school in a central location, within walking distance of all housing; three primary schools are planned for the Eastern Quarry. One preventative measure to tackle rising levels of obesity in children is a ban on fast-food outlets near schools throughout the area, achievable in the new developments of the garden city but not in established towns and cities. The healthy new towns scheme also aims to offer support to people who have dementia, as well as encouraging community cohesion by designing “safe and appealing” green spaces and introducing cycle paths. Such a complex illness makes daily tasks extremely difficult to negotiate, but the initiative aims to make it easier for people with dementia through a range of methods. Innovative use of signage is proposed. EBB SF L EE T

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According to NHS England, the traditional approach has been to make signs larger, but new thinking suggests that those with the condition may respond better to movement – scrolling digital signs may be implemented as a result. Other suggested measures include making streets wider, keeping trip hazards to a minimum, installing effective lighting and keeping people away from busy traffic areas and thoroughfares. Research concludes that these are things which can help, as well as making the most of technology and phone apps to ensure people can be treated in their

own home as much as possible, in familiar surroundings, rather than having to go into residential care. Ebbsfleet has the most homes proposed of any of the successful bids. This poses challenges on the already stretched health service, as more people means greater demand. Integrating social, physical and mental healthcare is part of the plan to provide health services at the site. Su Xavier, public health adviser for NHS Dartford, Gravesham and Swanley Clinical Commissioning Group – a joint partner on the project – believes an integrated hub should be created: “This would mean you can do things under one roof,” she says. “When people say healthcare, they think hospitals – but the majority of services are provided through GPs. “The challenge is that we need a lot more staff to deal with large levels of demand. That’s about how we stop people [healthcare professionals] going to London for work and we do this by creating an accessible and integrated healthcare system here.” As pressure mounts to resolve the housing crisis, the task of building the required number of units may dominate the public conversation, but as homes are created in new towns, there is also a significant opportunity to create communities where people feel content to live. By targeting some of the biggest health challenges facing the NHS from the outset in Ebbsfleet, status as a healthy new town, for the first garden city in over 100 years, will surely attract new residents, who can be confident of moving to a place where the wellbeing of people is seen as a top priority.

DESTINATION EBBSF L EET CON NECTIV ITY

CAPITAL AND CONTINENT

While cities of the Midlands and the north clamour for HS2, Ebbsfleet has the glittering prize of HS1 on track before it has even been built, the transport links that will help railroad investment to the nascent garden city BY JA ME S C R AC KNE L L

EBBSFLEET BOASTS ONE OF ONLY THREE INTERNATIONAL RAILWAY STATIONS IN THE COUNTRY

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Garden city to city —

here can’t be many new towns where railway stations with direct services to London were opened long before the first homes were built. Certainly, none has a direct service to Paris and Brussels. But then Ebbsfleet is no ordinary new town. This is planned to become a super-charged garden city, with existing public infrastructure and transport links that some of the biggest cities in the UK can only dream of. Ebbsfleet boasts one of only three international railway stations in the country, the others being London St Pancras and Ashford in Kent. The journey to Paris takes 125 minutes and Brussels, 110. It also takes less time to travel from Ebbsfleet to central London by train than it does from most outer London boroughs – 17 minutes is barely enough time to finish a vanilla latte. The station opened in November 2007 and Eurostar services began two months later. It is owned and operated by HS1, and is the only station in the country to be served exclusively by high-speed trains. Two other rail stations, Northfleet and Swanscombe, fall within the Ebbsfleet Garden City boundary. Both are on the South Eastern Main Line, and offer direct rail services to Charing Cross in under an hour. Ebbsfleet’s exemplary transport connections don’t end with rail. The future garden city is only two miles from the M25 orbital motorway, while its southern border is the

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Paris and Brussels are 125 and 110 minutes from Ebbsfleet, while St Pancras is reached in only 17 minutes.

main A2 road, via which Dover can be reached in an hour by car, and central London is just 20 miles to the west. While the existing road networks in the area are deemed sufficient to serve the development of thousands of new homes, plans are being drawn up to relieve congestion at the nearby M25 Dartford crossing. Three options for a new Lower Thames Crossing were published in 2013. Of the two which were taken forward, the Gravesend to Tilbury option was selected and was subject to public consultation in 2016, receiving more than 30,000 responses online and many more submitted by post. Around 13,000 people visited exhibitions at 24 sites in Kent and Essex. The proposals include options for road configurations on both sides of the Thames and whichever is chosen, the new crossing is due to open within a decade. Roads minister Andrew Jones says: “The government is committed to delivering a Lower Thames Crossing which will increase capacity and provide better, faster journeys across the Thames. Once complete it could add over £7 billion to the economy by increasing investment and business opportunities, and create over 5,000 new jobs nationally.” Regardless of the route it will take, the new Thames crossing will further enhance the connectivity of Ebbsfleet, the first garden city planned for England in over a century.

LO WE R T H A ME S C RO S S IN G On 24 March 2016 Highways England completed two months of consultation on a new route to connect Kent and Essex, designed to relieve pressure on the Dartford Crossing. Responses to the proposals will be fed back, before the government’s decision, which is due later this year. Costs are estimated at £5 billion. Several routes were considered but Highways England finally presented a dual carriageway, which would cross under the River Thames in a bored tunnel just east of Gravesend and Tilbury in Essex. The vision is for a new road, which would connect junction 1 of the M2 to the M25 between junctions 29 and 30, providing a 70mph motorway-to-motorway connection. The proposals offered three route options in Essex and two in Kent. Highways England concludes that the preferred route would deliver “the greatest improvement in journey times and a modern, high quality road along its entire length”.

O P P ORTUNITY S ITES MAP

EBBSFLEET GARDEN CITY

OP P ORT UN

I T Y ARE A S

Seven sites of different characteristics offer opportunities for investment. To build homes of high quality and good design is the aspiration of Ebbsfleet Development Corporation – and housebuilders are reporting huge interest in their current projects GEOGR APH

EXT ICAL C ON T

KING’S CROSS 17 MIN

EBBSFLEE T MASTERPL AN OPPORTUNIT Y SITES 1

Eastern Quarry

Northfleet Embankment West

Ebbsfleet Green

Northfleet Embankment East

Ebbsfleet Valley

Springhead Park

Swanscombe Peninsula

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O P P O RTUNITY SITES MAP

5 SWANSCOMBE

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PROJECTS EASTER N QUAR RY Outline planning consent for Eastern Quarry was granted to Land Securities and Camland at the beginning of 2013, making provision for up to 6,250 new homes, 30% of which are allocated as affordable. Also included is 120sq m of office space, 26,000sq m of retail, 11,000sq m of hotel, 50,000sq m of leisure and 50,000sq m of community space or social infrastructure. The site is made up of three parts or villages: Castle Hill, Alkerden and Western Cross. Work is in progress on the former. In August 2013, Ward Homes obtained detailed planning permission for phase one of Castle Hill, comprising 150 homes. Construction is under way, with the first 100 properties having been completed and the majority already occupied. The developer also obtained consent for a further 112 apartments in December 2015. In January 2016 Land Securities, Camland, Persimmon Homes and Circle Housing secured detailed permission for 295 homes, 125 of which are affordable, forming phase two of the project. Work started in February. Planning permission was granted in May 2016 to developer David Wilson Homes for phase three, which features 154 units. Castle Hill also saw the first new primary school for the garden city approved in March 2016. Cherry Orchard Primary, run by Leigh Academies Trust, will provide places for 420 students, 26 nursery children and 15 pupils with special needs. It is due to open in September 2017.

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SWANSCOMBE PENINSULA

EBBSFLEE T GR E EN Outline planning permission for Ebbsfleet Green was granted in March 2014 following an application by Redrow Homes. This includes up to 950 units plus 339sq m of retail space, with 920sq m for a pub or restaurant, 5,000sq m of hotel space, a 358sq m community hall and 1,400sq m for a primary school. Redrow and GL Hearn are currently working on phase one of the development, which got the green light in January 2016. The first 60 homes are due to be completed in 2017 and a further 120 the following year. The housing will be bordered by a new local park and existing woodland.

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According to Redrow, the first phase will include a range of one and two-bedroom apartments and two, three, four and five-bedroom homes, of which 28 will be allocated as affordable. Pre-application discussions are under way for the next phases, including the hotel and the pub or restaurant.

Developer Lafarge was granted outline planning permission in February 2016 for 110 homes to be built on Craylands Lane. But the main feature of the Swanscombe Peninsula is the proposed leisure resort known as London Paramount, which was announced as a nationally significant infrastructure project by the government in 2014. A land deal was agreed for the £3.2 billion scheme on a 353-ha site at the beginning of 2015. A planning application is being prepared by developer London Resort Company Holdings for possible submission in the summer of 2017, following the developer’s decision to adjust plans for the huge enterprise. Some details for the project, which has production company Paramount Pictures at its forefront, have been revealed, indicating that the resort will feature a theatre, cinema, music clubs, hotels, shops, cafes, restaurants, bars and up to 210,000sq m of indoor and outdoor space for events. It might also include Europe’s largest indoor water park. The developer expects that when the scheme is up and running, it will create up to 27,000 new jobs. The article on page 34 includes an interview with London Paramount CEO David Testa.

O P P ORTUNITY S ITES P ROJ ECTS

EBBSFLEE T VALL EY Outline permission for Ebbsfleet Valley was granted in four separate quarters in several stages from 2002 to 2009: Station Quarter North; Station Quarter South (Dartford borough); Springhead Park (above) and Northfleet Rise (in the borough of Gravesham). The four areas are expected to deliver up to 3,384 homes, 493,700sq m of employment space (including offices and light industrial units), a further 310,420sq m for schools, community facilities and local shops, as well as 163,740sq m for hotels, leisure and entertainment facilities. Work is under way on Springhead Park (see right).

S P R IN G H E A D PA R K Developer Countryside, which obtained planning permission for phase one of Springhead Park in 2006 and revised its plans in 2011, has completed construction of the first 298 homes, 94 of which were allocated as affordable, as well as a combined community

centre and a place of worship. The developer started work on phase two at the end of April 2016 and completion of 123 new properties is expected for June 2019. A further 79 homes are expected to be built by 2021.

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NO RT H F LE ET EMBAN K M E N T W E ST An outline planning application for Northfleet Embankment West has been submitted by Lafarge. It is awaiting the green light from Natural England and Gravesham Borough Council. The application includes up to 532 homes, 48,000sq m of employment floor space, 850sq m for local shops and services and 1,000sq m for a health centre.

NO RT H F LEE T EMBA N KMENT EAST Northfleet Embankment East is currently in mixed ownership, with owners including Kimberly Clark, Stema Shipping, Lidl and the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA). HCA has implemented land raising work on the eastern part of the site, indicated as a residential quarter, and has demolished five buildings to facilitate forthcoming proposals. Pre-application discussions for around 750 homes started in May 2016.

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Lee Evans Partnership LLP Established in 1974 in the historic city of Canterbury, Lee Evans Partnership LLP is an award-winning multi-discipline design practice based around four studios – Architecture, Planning, Sustainability and CDM Ebbsfleet Garden City Lee Evans Partnership (LEP) is working with Land Securities and the Ebbsfleet Development Corporation to deliver the next phase of the Ebbsfleet Garden City. The area, known as Castle Hill South, includes the first Local Neighbourhood Centre and comprises over 150 new homes, a 2FE primary school and a community centre along with associated commercial and community facilities. Alongside landowners and developers, LEP is working in line with the government’s objectives of creating high-quality housing and communities supported by local employment opportunities, infrastructure and recreational amenities.

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L ON DON PARAMOUNT I NVESTMENT

TICKET TO RIDE If plans for the London Paramount entertainment resort are approved by the government in 2017, its creators believe it has the potential to become one of the most popular tourist attractions in the UK BY JA ME S WO OD

or nearly a quarter of a century, families and eager children on school trips are among those to have travelled across the English Channel to visit the Disneyland Paris theme park. It was only a matter of time before a similar attraction of competing stature would be proposed for the UK. Plans for the London Paramount entertainment resort are well advanced. At the beginning of 2015, a land deal was agreed for the £3.2 billion project, on 353ha of mostly saltmarsh and a small amount of brownfield land, at the Swanscombe Peninsula near Ebbsfleet Garden City. A planning application is being prepared by developer London Resort Company Holdings (LRCH) for possible submission in 2017. If the secretary of state for communities and local government grants permission, the attraction is scheduled to open in 2021, a date which chairman Steve Norris says LRCH remains committed to, despite the submission date being pushed back. Designation of the site by the UK government as a nationally significant infrastructure project – the first leisure scheme in the country to be given this status – has boosted the chances of success.

Having one of the world’s most famous production companies, Paramount Pictures, at the forefront of the project has attracted other prestigious organisations too. BBC Worldwide, Aardman Animations (behind the much-loved Wallace and Gromit) and the British Film Institute are among those to have signed agreements with London Paramount during the last year – all helping to create a unique crowd-puller. The project is now being marketed as combining the best of Hollywood – through Paramount – with the best of British, through the BBC. Details of these organisations’ participation are under wraps. What has been revealed indicates the resort will feature a theatre, a cinema, music clubs, hotels, shops, cafes, restaurants, bars and up to 210,000sq m of indoor and outdoor spaces for events. It has also been suggested that the project could include Europe’s largest indoor water park. CEO of London Paramount and executive director of LRCH, David Testa, explains: “Our landmark agreement with Paramount Pictures, the oldest major Hollywood studio in

Spectacular attraction — London Paramount will be a massive creator of jobs and boost the economy, a destination to rival Disneyland Paris.

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existence, allows the resort access to iconic movies such as Mission: Impossible, Star Trek, The Godfather and The Italian Job. “The entertainment resort will contain a number of themed zones, with exciting rides and attractions for families and children, as well as for more adventurous, thrill-seeking visitors.” The search to find the perfect site for London Paramount began in 2013 and Testa says those behind the project looked at 15 or 16 locations before settling on the Swanscombe Peninsula. “You always have to be careful when you’re selecting a location,” he says. “There are a number of factors to consider – such as minimising the impact a project such as this can have for people who already live in the area.” So what qualities persuaded Testa of the Swanscombe Peninsula’s potential? EBB SF L EE T

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“London Paramount will be a worldclass attraction which will have a tremendous effect on the locality” DAVID T E S TA , L RC H

“We chose the site for a number of reasons,” he says. “It has excellent connectivity to central London and the continent, it is accessible in 17 minutes from London St Pancras and is just over two hours away from Paris.” Eurostar trains leaving from Ebbsfleet International Station make journeys to mainland Europe possible, which it is hoped will result in increased numbers of visitors from abroad. There are other benefits too. “We will be regenerating a brownfield site, which has been isolated by its previous industrial uses,” says Testa – it was owned by Lafarge Tarmac for more than 140 years. “Through this project, we intend to harness the potential of the River Thames. We want to make it not only possible, but an attractive option for people to walk, cycle or bus around the site. The Development Consent Order proposal for 35

L ON DON PARAMOUNT I NVESTMENT

“London Paramount complements existing regeneration in the area providing up to 27,000 jobs, and it will act as a catalyst for the garden city in Ebbsfleet” DAVID T E S TA , LOND ON PA R A MO UN T

National treasures —

Aardman Animations’ creations Shaun the Sheep and Wallace and Gromit could feature at London Paramount, along with Star Trek.

London Paramount also complements existing regeneration in the area by providing up to 27,000 new jobs, and it will act as a catalyst for regeneration at the garden city in Ebbsfleet.” Projections indicate that 50,000 people will visit the site every day, equating to 15 million visitors a year, which would lead to a significant return on the £3.2 billion investment, with benefits for local businesses and employment for residents too. The challenges now are to get planning consent and to raise the required funding. Kleinwort Benson has acted as financial adviser on the project since May 2015. The following October, news emerged that Chinese infrastructure and investment company, SinoFortone, intends to provide around £100 million – which Testa believes shows the global appeal of the project. But the benefits the resort will bring to the local economy are also significant. Testa says the multimillion-pound investment will profit the economies of Dartford, Gravesham and elsewhere in Kent. “There will be an increase in economic activity in the area, leading to an associated increase in local spend,” he says. Construction of the scheme is due to last around three years, leading to employment for skilled and semi-skilled workers. Job creation will extend beyond those employed directly at London Paramount with thousands of jobs also to be created in the supply chain. Consultation with stakeholders and residents has been very positive, says Testa. More than 3,000 people attended the latest public exhibitions of the plan during April and May 2015 in Dartford and Gravesham. A scaled model and new visuals revealed what is proposed, and details of the themed zones have begun to emerge. Fenlon Dunphy of Kuwati European Holding, the holding investment company

with a majority share in LRCH, believes the feedback was “hugely encouraging”. “We are carefully considering all feedback provided with the intention to feed this into the proposals we submit to the secretary of state,” he adds. Around 46 hours of public consultation took place in village halls, leisure centres, council offices and at Bluewater shopping centre. Feedback was collected from those who gave their views on the masterplan, opinions were also sought on proposed transport options and the project’s approach to education and jobs. Of 661 forms submitted, 84% approved of the draft masterplan, 83% backed the approach to walking, cycling and making use of the River Thames and 78% recorded their approval for the mitigation strategies proposed to protect the environment. Improvements will be made to the roads, including a dedicated access route from the A2, and habitats will be created for wildlife, according to Testa. Maintaining strong relationships with the Ebbsfleet Development Corporation (EDC) is important in seeing the successful implementation of the project and Testa says this been achieved: “We have a fantastic level of engagement with the EDC. “Overall, we believe that London Paramount will be a world-class attraction, which will have a tremendous effect on the locality and we also have no doubt that it will attract millions of people from all over the world.” As central government’s decision over the resort looms, Testa is confident that his ambitions will be brought to fruition. Years from now, Parisian teachers may generate excitement by promising their pupils a school trip to the London Paramount entertainment resort, every bit as great as the undisputed popularity a visit to Disneyland Paris holds among British school kids. S U MMER

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Based in Kent for 30 years, our planners and designers are helping to mould plans for the countyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s future growth & success. We combine our influence as a leading national practice with our local knowledge to help shape the built environment that surrounds us. To find out more visit us at www.bartonwillmore.co.uk, or call our Ebbsfleet office on 01322 374 660

EASTGATE COM MUNITY

COMMUNITY HEART Eastgate community centre at Springhead Park raised Â£2 million to establish a social hub, rapidly becoming the heart of this new community BY L U C Y P URDY

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EASTGATE COM M UNITY

“IT’S BEEN A LOT OF WORK BUT IT’S ALSO A HUGE PRIVILEGE. WE REALLY DO CARE ABOUT THE COMMUNITY AND PEOPLE FEEL THIS” DR P E T E C A R T E R, E A S T G AT E MINI S T E R A ND S E NI OR E X E C U T I VE

ouses are one thing: a genuine sense of belonging is another. This was behind Countryside’s and Land Securities’ commitment to each invest £500,000 in Eastgate community centre. For Ebbsfleet Garden City’s first phase of housing, Springhead Park, placemaking is more important than ever and the centre is, by all accounts, serving its purpose – and then some. An existing relationship with North Kent Community Church (NKCC) made the body an obvious partner in creating a community and worship facility that it too could call home. “We recognised that NKCC shared our passion for creating communities and that, by working with them, we could really help to kickstart the emergence of a thriving community at Springhead Park,” says Gary Sherwin, investment director at Land Securities. Together with Countryside, Land Securities provided the infrastructure for the facility, as well as a financial contribution of just under £500,000 toward the build cost. Land Securities and Lafarge contributed the land. “This allowed NKCC to concentrate on the design of the facility as well as obtaining planning consent and raising the remaining project finance,” says Sherwin. “Now that Eastgate is complete, it is easy to see how mutually beneficial the partnership has been. EBB SF L EE T

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Creating community — Developers Countryside and Land Securities each invested £500,000 in the Eastgate centre.

“We think that the real winners, however, are the residents. They not only benefit from a multipurpose community facility on their doorstep but also from the engagement of the people at NKCC who are passionate about fostering community at Springhead Park and the wider Ebbsfleet area.” The centre is used for a huge range of activities and events, from weddings to business conferences of up 500 attendees, and from mother and baby meet-ups to the home of local Slimming World clubs and the Gravesend Bridge Club.

Kent County Council holds meetings here, as does the Ebbsfleet Development Corporation itself. Within its strikingly designed walls the centre has hosted public consultation events for the proposed London Paramount entertainment resort, which is planned for Swanscombe Peninsula. “It’s a very joyful place. It’s peaceful, not frantic, and is well organised too,” says Eastgate minister and senior executive Dr Pete Carter. “One of the development corporation directors said: ‘I’ve never seen a miserable face in this place.’ It’s been a lot of work but it’s also a huge privilege. We really do care about the community and people feel this. “We want to nurture an atmosphere of support and hope here, for people to feel empowered and to believe in themselves. The community here has a common dream, and the building is a tool for that.” 39

SNA PS HOT FACTS & FIGURES

DATA DOSSIER

With planning consents in place and transport links that include an international station, Ebbsfleet’s numbers stack up

Ebbsfleet International

TRAVEL TIMES King’s Cross

Folkestone

minutes

Lille

Brussels

2 05

hour

minutes

1 15

minutes

new homes Dover

sq m of employment space,

minutes

Paris hours

Planning permission granted for

1 53

minutes

Marseille

hours

sq m of retail, hotel and leisure and

sq m of community facilities

EUROSTAR SERVICES EVERY WEEK 40

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SNA PSHOT FACTS & F IGURES

Up to

Ebbsfleet has direct access by road to the A2 and connects to the motorway network via the M25 and M2

NORTH KENT LINE PROVIDES LINKS TO CHARING CROSS AND VICTORIA FROM SWANSCOMBE AND NORTHFLEET IN UNDER AN HOUR

EBB SF L EE T

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homes – a new community in the Ebbsfleet, Northfleet, and Swanscombe areas

1,026ha

in the Ebbsfleet Development Corporation area, with 853ha of vacant land

London Paramount leisure resort at Swanscombe Peninsula is anticipated to contain

sq m

of leisure space, up to

Ebbsfleet Development Corporation has secured £310 million of government funding for infrastructure to kickstart regeneration

hotel rooms, creating up to

jobs 41

Investment opportunities in the London Borough of Bromley

can find a home that is flexible enough to suit their lifestyle.

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C O MME RC E Bluewater’s established success – and London Paramount’s huge ambition

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C ONNE C T I VI T Y London, Paris, Brussels – the high-speed train arrived before Ebbsfleet was built

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S O U N D INVESTM E NT R ETA IL

BLUEWATER AN D BEYOND Bluewater, the thriving retail and leisure destination built in a former chalk quarry, attests to Ebbsfleet Garden Cityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s potential and demonstrates why Land Securities was so keen to secure a large share of this retail behemoth BY L U C Y P URDY

EBB SF L EE T

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SOUND INV ESTMENT RETAIL

“With the homes built so far, we are seeing a lot of people move from London who are used to the very best of retail and leisure” RU S S E L L LO VE L A ND, L A ND S E C 44

ince opening its doors in March 1999, Bluewater has welcomed customers making more than 400 million visits – equivalent to more than six times the population of the UK. It has launched more than 50 brands in the UK, many taking striking global statement stores, and is often the destination of choice for international companies on the hunt for their first UK shops. In the past year alone, luxury watch brands Montblanc and Breitling – German and Swiss respectively – have arrived, and many of the 300 retailers and restaurants at Bluewater rank number two in the UK after their central London relatives. Bluewater is without doubt a success story, and an early indication of the potential for Ebbsfleet’s development. As the centre’s architect, Eric Kuhne of CivicArts / Eric R Kuhne & Associates, points out, any critics were silenced soon after it opened. “People have fallen in love with it. And the reason is, we made it look like it was chiselled out of the chalk. It had its own story to tell,” says Kuhne. “The best compliment came from one of the ministers who turned to me and said: ‘Eric, I don’t know how you did it. The most extraordinary thing is it turned

Bluewater brands —

green dream, electric Tesla 2 sports car; Next – expanded flagship store.

out a thousand times better than they ever imagined. And in the bottom of a quarry. How did you pull that off?’ And the answer is, we just paid attention to what Kent, and the genius of that part of England, was about.” What it is about now is a thriving retail and entertainment centre: a place that draws huge footfall with a packed programme of events, from fashion shows to product launches, and shopping and leisure attractions that flow seamlessly from day into night. An economy in its own right, Bluewater has more than 3,000 people working there at any time, a figure that can double over Christmas and other peak times. Next recently unveiled its enlarged and revamped Bluewater store, adding 650sq m of space over a 10-month project, and S U MMER

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S O U N D INVESTM E NT R ETA IL

Lie of the land —

landscaping and generous parking provision enhance Bluewater as a destination.

men’s outfitter Hackett London opened its new 251sq m store in June. In 2014, Land Securities bought a 30% stake in Bluewater to the tune of £696 million, and now manages the centre. The decision, as portfolio director Russell Loveland explains, was relatively easy. “Bluewater was an incredibly strong proposition for us. It offered over 1.6 million square feet of leading retail and leisure offer, in what is a beautiful setting, and is also an incredibly safe and accessible environment. Its location is fantastic: a catchment of around 6.6 million people and around £13 billion potential spend,” he says. “It was also a key strategic move for Land Securities. We wanted to focus on dominant retail locations as that’s where we see the growth in the market coming from. The retail environment is very competitive now, with the internet and social media, and we saw a real move of spend to dominant locations that are easily accessible and have a very wide offer. “The opportunity was so strong and we knew we could add our experience and expertise to make it even stronger. As far as our retail portfolio goes, Bluewater is our flagship, and that’s why we were so keen to acquire it. Major retail destinations just never EBB SF L EE T

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come up for sale; it was such a rarity. So to get hold of it – and for such an opportunity to fit so beautifully into our strategy as well – was fantastic. We knew that if we could put all of our experience, knowledge and effort in, we would generate strong returns for ourselves and our brands.” Bluewater is just north of the Eastern Quarry, a site at the north-west of Ebbsfleet Garden City, which is earmarked for development of 4,750 homes, the largest residential component. As they work out how best to integrate Bluewater into the new garden city, Loveland and his team are considering the possibility of a physical link – “a road, path, maybe even a tram” – from the Bluewater quarry directly into the Eastern Quarry. New residents will find themselves part of a community that seems to coexist happily with Bluewater. Since opening in 1999, the centre’s Learning Shop has brokered employment for 40,000 people, the majority of whom live locally, with a focus on the recruitment and training of 16 to 24-year-olds. And, over the past 16 years, Bluewater has employed more than 9,000 local contractors and contributed more than £75 million to local businesses. As Loveland points out, Ebbsfleet Garden

“We made Bluewater look like it was chiselled out of the chalk. We just paid attention to what Kent, and the genius of that part of England, was about” E RI C K UHNE, BL UE WAT E R A RC HI T E C T

City is a “fundamental part of the attraction” now, as is the wider umbrella of the Thames Gateway region, and will play a key role in the ongoing evolution of Bluewater. He says: “With the homes that have been built so far, we are seeing a lot of people move from London, and these are people who are used to the very best of retail and leisure. So we are under pressure to provide those opportunities for them – it’s very exciting. It has been very good to see Ebbsfleet Development Corporation coming into play and hear the rhetoric being stepped up – that this is now a place to invest in and a new place to do business.” 45

N ORT HFLEET HERITAGE A RCHITECTURE

AN TIQUE R OA D S H OW Historic houses, shops and pubs are an unexpected feature of the new garden city– but Northfleet offers inspiration for developers in search of character

Beautiful vision –

Fine houses are preserved in Northfleet, which was once popular among visitors from London.

BY S I OBH Á N C ROZ IE R P H O T O GR A P H Y BY L IBI P E DDE R

uch of Ebbsfleet Garden City is being built on former industrial land. Its architecture will be a mix of Kentish village styles, with the potential for contemporary buildings in some of the new neighbourhoods. But Ebbsfleet’s story is not being written from scratch. By 1800, Northfleet was a thriving centre for building fine ships and became a popular destination for day-trippers from London. Taverns, hotels, dining rooms, coffee houses and tea rooms were plentiful. In the second half of the century, with visitors able to travel further afield by train, the first commuters began to settle in Northfleet – London businessmen who built substantial houses. Several have survived and are within The Hill conservation area, designated by Gravesham Borough Council, architecture which could be emulated in Ebbsfleet. 46

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GA R D E N C I TY

FULL SPEED Creating a new garden city in the Garden of England

S U MME R 2016 I S S UE 1

C ONNE C T I VI T Y

C O MME RC E

C O MMUNI T Y

London, Paris, Brussels – the high-speed train arrived before Ebbsfleet was built

Bluewater’s established success – and London Paramount’s huge ambition

Homes, schools, shopping and leisure – from development sites to town