Warehouse redevelopment will create “tiny forest” in east London district, practice says
Mowat & Company has secured planning permission to retrofit a cluster of commercial premises in east London to create a mixed-use development with a “tiny forest” at its heart.
The practice’s proposals for Benyon Properties will add an extra storey to a warehouse building in Forest Road, Hackney, that served the haberdashery business William Gee. The firm has been trading in the area since 1906 and still operates from Kingsland Road, at the western boundary of the site.
The 1,281sq m scheme will create a total of nine new homes, as well as refurbished retail space and new creative studios.
At the centre of the scheme will be a small urban forest that Mowat said had been inspired by the courtyard’s original name of “Forest Place”.
Mowat said a “diverse selection” of trees had been chosen for its resilience to climate change and to encourage insects, fungi and birds to flourish.
“The forest courtyard has been thoughtfully mapped out to compliment the renovated buildings,” the practice said. “The design team measured the amount of daylight and sunlight in the courtyard and chose trees with small canopies that thrive in urban environments, which are strategically placed to respect the existing foundations and drainage.
“In spite of design challenges, the team behind Forest Place were willing to go the extra mile to set a precedent for the future of dense inner city spaces.”
Project data
Location: Forest Road, Hackney
GIA: 1,281sqm
Architect: Mowat & Company
Client: Benyon Properties
QS: Stockdale
PWS: Hamiltons Chartered Surveyors
BSE: Ritchie & Daffin
BREEAM: SHA Environmental
Structural engineer: Structure Workshop
Planning consultant: CMA Planning
Right to light: Lumina
Landscape architect: Farrer Huxley
Building control: Oculus Consultancy
Downloads
Forest Road plan
PDF, Size 0.96 mb
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