New events on proposed Lewisham retail park redevelopment
Further events are to be held on revised plans to demolish and rebuild Lewisham retail park on Loampit Vale.
Legal and General secured planning permission seven years ago but never progressed with the project. Sports Direct and Matalan still trade on site.
In-person events are to be held during the evening of Thursday 4th September and the morning of Saturday 6th September at 70 Loampit Vale.
The site sits beside Lewisham station and what would be the terminus for any Bakerloo line station, though after nearly a century of talk and many ideas this government again failed to support it during the last spending review.
Realistically its not happening for many years – decades probably – yet the consultation features a masterplan stating “Bakerloo arrival square” and a “safeguarded Bakerloo station entrance”.
That safeguarded entrance was built as part of an adjacent tower and also includes a link to Lewisham railway station but was never fitted out.
How about utilising and improving links to the assets that are already there: A railway station with services to three London terminals at Victoria, Charing Cross and Cannon Street.
London Bridge is just eight minutes away.
It’s important developers, Network Rail and Lewisham Council work closely together to enable better access to the station in the near future rather than pipe dreams about a Bakerloo line no government ever seems to want to support.
Narrow focus
It’s not unusual to see developers wax lyrical about possible future transport improvements which may never happen – or if they do not for many years – and ignore what’s already there.
Hopefully something that isn’t repeated here. It’s similar to when plans go in at Greenwich peninsula as applications endlessly reference access to the tube at north Greenwich whilst ignoring nearby Southeastern stations, shops, public services and amenities. Developers are often laser-focused on the tube alone – and that’s a place where it actually exists.
Similar has so far happened at the other side of the station beside platform 4. New homes built but no new entrance.
The Tesco supermarket is set to be demolished with high density new homes planned on site.
An entrance did exist until the 2010s leading to platform 4. Since then everyone has been funnelled to the front entrance alone.
A previous study into station improvements was cancelled back in 2020, though there has been some talk recently about access improvements.
