Blackfriars developers could pay £100m in lieu of affordable homes

On Tuesday night Southwark Council's planning committee is likely to rubber-stamp plans to demolish Ludgate House and Sampson House which sit either side of the railway line at the southern end of Blackfriars Bridge.

The Carlyle Group proposes nine new buildings on the combined site, including 489 luxury homes, new offices, shops and a cultural space.

The tallest building will be 49 storeys high and is intended to form a 'gateway' to Southwark when paired with the 50-storey One Blackfriars tower which will stand on the opposite side of Blackfriars Road.

The scheme, like many other riverside developments in Southwark, does not include any on-site affordable housing. Instead the developers will pay Southwark Council between £65 million and £100 million which the authority will use to build new council homes elsewhere in the borough.

The council claims that the cash will enable it to build between 260 and 400 new council homes towards its 10,000 target.

Controversially, the scheme also proposes the felling of six trees, including two mature plane trees next to Blackfriars Bridge.

The two riverside trees – which are subject to a tree preservation order – will be felled to make way for a wider set of stairs linking Blackfriars Bridge with the Thames Path.

Southwark planning officers say that the trees "have a high amenity value" but their removal can be justified because of the improved access to the riverside path.

Objectors to the proposed high-rise development include English Heritage and the Royal Parks Agency.

The Twentieth Century Society has called for Sampson House to be preserved.

Councillors will consider the proposals at a meeting on Tuesday 8 October at Southwark Council's Tooley Street offices.