Public Consultation on New Planning Proposal
An exciting development to provide 22 one,
two and three bedroom apartments, shops and offices
Abbey Commercial is proposing to redevelop the existing building at 38 to 44 Ballards Lane in Finchley Central town centre, to provide a new building which will deliver approximately 22 new homes, and new high quality office and retail floorspace which will significantly improve upon the existing commercial space, alongside upgrades to the public realm in this highly accessible location.
This website, has been created in order to present our current plans for the proposed development to the local community ‘at a distance’. We would urge as many people as possible to provide us with their thoughts on the initial proposals by using the email address provided on this website.
The Formal consultation on the initial proposals will open on Tuesday 29th June 2021 and close on Thursday 29th July 2021.This website sets out the proposed plans and aspirations for the site. However, if you have further questions or comments at this stage, please get in touch with the team using the contact details below.
Abbey Commercial is bringing forward proposals to deliver approximately 22 new homes and improvements to the quality of employment and retail floorspace on a highly accessible site that is currently occupied by a largely redundant and inefficient building on Ballards Lane, close to Finchley Central, which does not actively contribute towards the aspirations of the Town Centre.
The site is situated on the east side of the centre of Ballards Lane, north of Finchley Central Station. It is within Finchley Church End Town Centre (also known as Finchley Central Town Centre), and it is not in a Conservation Area. It is also worth noting that, within the Adopted London Plan, Finchley Church End is classified as a District Centre.
The existing building is low quality. The proposals offer the opportunity to transform the area with a new building of significant architectural quality with animated frontages. This scheme will also provide high quality public realm in the town centre.
The site is located within the Finchley ward of Barnet, a thriving residential suburb and is well placed for transport connections. The proposed development is within walking distance of Finchley Central underground station and connection to the Northern Line. On Ballards Lane itself there is access to bus routes 13, 125, 143, 382, 460, 626, 683 and N20. There are also parks and recreation grounds within a mile of the site location.
The immediate area has a mix of uses including commercial, office and residential use as well as cafés and food shops. The site itself is located in the heart of the centre in the primary shopping frontage.
The existing building does not successfully relate to the architectural language of the locally listed building (48 Ballards Lane) or terraced street frontage along Ballards Lane and its hard landscaping does not make a positive contribution to the wider public space. Therefore, it is proposed to demolish the existing 1960’s building and construct a new building of considerable aesthetic merit that will enhance the existing town centre and create new high quality residential and commercial accommodation. We have worked closely with the London Borough of Barnet to design a building which fits well within its context and projects the future vision of Finchley Central by creating a new landmark building with high-quality public realm that will complement and enhance the new proposed Piazza as a new focal point of Finchley.
The existing building currently consists of a Ground Floor of retail and vacant offices and two upper floors of vacant offices.
The vacant space totals 774 square metres and has been vacant since October 2018.
The retail space totals 127 square metres.
The proposed building uses a limited palette of materials, primarily consisting of brick that is more familiar with the neighbouring buildings whilst still creating a strong connection with the existing terrace row, drawing on horizontal banding details in the proposed façade and window details.
We are proposing a new building – nine floors in total. There will be employment use on the first three floors.
We envisage E class – shop, restaurant or café on the Ground Floor with two units totalling 218 square metres.
At ground floor level, the scheme offers 12 covered car parking spaces to the rear of the property for the commercial uses.
There will be a total 54 bicycle parking spaces, consisting of 44 for the residential units and ten for the commercial elements, predominantly long stay, but with some specifically for short stay.
The First and Second Floors will also be E class and we envisage office use providing a total of 832 square metres.
The Third, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth and Seventh Floors will be residential, and there will three two-bedroom flats and one one-bedroom flat on each floor.
The Eighth Floor will have two three-bedroom family units.
The proposed building will provide a total of three two-bedroom wheelchair units.
Each flat has access to its own private amenity that meets or exceeds the GLA minimum standards.
The project is subject to a feasibility study which will determine the level of provision of affordable housing.
The overall design and scale of the proposals have been shaped by both its existing context and the wider development plans to enhance the local area.
The surrounding context to the site has a variety of building scales and typologies that make up the high street, dispersed amongst these along Ballards Lane are existing buildings of a similar height to the proposals. Central House is a 9 storey office building situated just south-west of the proposal site on the opposite side of Ballards Lane. The relatively new Finchley Church End library south-west of Finchley Central Station also reaches 8 storeys. Like the proposed scheme, the library is highly distinguishable in scale from its immediate context, yet it provides a successful example of how a tall contemporary building can be effectively and attractively integrated into the existing streetscape; providing a positive focal point for the local area.
The Finchley Central Town Centre Strategy adopted in 2017 outlines a series of opportunities for the area. One element is its proposal to create a series of new public civic spaces, one of which is Finchley Square. This new square is to be created on the footstep of the proposed site and seeks to enhance the area via a new ‘centre’ that can support local civic life. The redevelopment proposed at 44 Ballards Lane seeks to support and enhance this ambition for the area by activating the high street and creating a contextual landmark building at this new local civic centre.
There are other sites along Ballards Lane which have also been identified with the potential for future development within the emerging Local Plan. This designation includes the existing Tesco building directly opposite the proposal site and the proposed Finchley Square. Central House has also been highlighted by Barnet Council as a long-term development opportunity. It is not unreasonable to consider that any future development would explore an increase in height on these sites.
Barnet Council’s ambitions for the area as a new focal point of the high street are beginning to sculpt the evolution of Ballards Lane. The proposals for 44 Ballards Lane have been designed to respond to their immediate context and seek to create a high quality landmark mix use building that will support the future success of the Town Centre and the inception of the new public realm at Finchley Square.
The site benefits from high public transport accessibility (PTAL 5). It is within comfortable walking distance of Finchley Central underground station and connection to the Northern Line. On Ballards Lane itself there is access to numerous bus routes, and there are multiple parks and recreation grounds within a mile of the site.
The site is currently serviced from the front of the property. As the proposal does not propose to alter the on-street servicing demand, no further on-street servicing facilities are required.
The proposal provides 12 covered parking spaces to the rear of the site, and will provide electrical vehicle charging points as per the London Plan. Secure cycle parking for both the commercial and residential units is also to be provided, totalling 54 spaces.
The development will aim to reduce energy demand through the adoption of passive design and construction methods. These measures will include maximising passive solar gains and daylight whilst minimising overheating through site layout, massing and orientation; maximising air tightness and minimising thermal loss through highly insulated building fabric; and minimising heat loss through high-performance glazing.
Further, the proposed energy strategy for the site uses renewable technology. This includes the use of a central air source heat pump to serve the residential units, which will achieve the London Plan zero carbon target.
The proposal will create 22 new residential homes. In order to cater for the diverse housing needs of the area, a wide variety of unit sizes are proposed across 6 residential storeys:
5 No. 1 Bedroom 2 Person
3 No. 2 Bedroom 3 Person
9 No. 2 Bedroom 4 Person
3 No. 3 Bedroom 5 Person
2 No. 3 Bedroom 6 Person
This unit mix includes 2 wheelchair accessible units located at third and fourth floor levels.
ARCHITECTS
Child Graddon Lewis
PLANNING CONSULTANT
Avison Young
TRANSPORT CONSULTANT
Pulsar Transport Limited
ARBORICULTURAL CONSULTANT
Greengage Environmental Limited
LANDSCAPE CONSULTANT
Eleanor Trentfield Landscape Architects Limited
LANDOWNER
Abbey Commercial Limited
STRUCTURAL ENGINEER
Conisbee
MECHANICAL & ELECTRICAL ENGINEER
LLIB Consulting Engineers
We are aiming to submit a planning application to Barnet Council in the coming months.
Please sign up to the mailing list via the link at the bottom if you wish to be kept updated.
June/July 2021– public consultation
September 2021 – application submitted
Late 2021 – anticipated determination
2022 – start on site
2023 – target completion
In light of government guidance during the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, this consultation is taking place ‘at a distance’, using a range of different feedback tools.
We are committed to engaging widely and making sure everyone has an opportunity to take part in a way that suits them.
If you would be interested in learning more about the plans or providing further comments, please do get in touch with the team at: ballardslane@morganman.com 020 8732 3721.
You can provide your feedback by using the feedback form below.
