Shepherds Bush Market proposal

The council held a planning committee meeting on 5th December, as noted in our Hammersmith Weekly email, with the majority of the agenda devoted to the market redevelopment proposal. Officers have recommended consent.

After a short speech by one objector, following on from a rather longer exposition of the proposal by the planning officer and daylight consultant, the meeting was spectacularly derailed by protesters related to a group called ‘Protect Shepherd’s Bush Market’, and then cancelled.

We first engaged with the developers in October 2020, and most of the committee has been to one or more of the four exhibitions in various locations in the market over the last three years. The development hasn’t changed significantly over this time, it was born as a large set of buildings, somewhat awkwardly dropped into the Old Laundry Yard. We made our observations public back in April.

We followed up with a letter to the planners in August when the plans had been published and we’d reviewed them, detailing a significant number of issues that need to be addressed before any consideration of consent, these being:

• CGI views: roof plant enclosures/29 Pennard outlook after dark/views with the site
• Roof plant enclosure on HS6 diagram
• Mitigation of intrusion on Pennard Road houses
• Daylight conditions in the Market area
• Concrete panels finish
• Playground provision
• Individuality of stalls
• Market paving
• Damp-proofing railway arches
• Landscape maintenance
• Design of passage at 42 Goldhawk Road
• Independent scrutiny of daylight report.

We were pleased to hear the independent daylight specialist’s review at the start of the planning meeting, addressing one of the concerns. This shows that there are some daylight issues, but they appear fairly modest for neighbours. However one or two locations will be significantly affected in and around Pennard Mansions, and mitigation needs to be provided, in addition to proper consideration of the likely limited daylight in the market, due to the size of the proposed overshadowing building – point 4. The meeting ended abruptly before we’d heard answers to the other equally important issues that we’d raised.

In considering this proposal, we walked a fine line between supporting something that may improve the market and fill the adjacent empty plot providing homes and jobs, but that presents a real risk of overdevelopment and excessive gentrification, and opposing it because it’s a very large set of buildings on a small plot, close to many existing neighbours, resulting in the issues noted. Your committee reflected this range of views, and we resolved to constructively present the issues to be solved rather than outright object.

Protect Shepherd’s Bush Market

The great local institution of 109 years standing, represented by the market, has undoubtedly suffered post-pandemic, and needs a boost of some kind, but is this the right kind?  In the end we, like the traders, some of whom oppose, some of whom support redevelopment, felt that, subject to the list above, we should support the development as a way, if not perhaps the ideal way, to improve the market.  Others clearly disagree.