Visitors to Waterloo Station will soon find some rare green space above the platforms.
Plans have finally been approved for the redevelopment of Elizabeth House, a 1960s office block that runs beside the old Eurostar platforms. The site has sat in limbo for at least a dozen years.
The vast scheme, by HB Reavis, will see yet more density slotted in behind the South Bank. The area was recently transformed by a series of mid-rise buildings around the Shell Centre. This new project will see 1.2 million sq feet of additional office space and retail.
About an acre of that space will be used for an aerial garden overlooking the station. This will be open to the public. It all looks rather nice, but there's no way it's going to get built as visualised, with such a meagre safety rail.
The scheme will also include something called the 'Waterloo Curve', a pedestrian route through the complex, lined with shops and cafes. This will connect to the station itself, and the major new retail and dining destination currently under development.
Work on the development is due to begin in early 2020.
Discussion of the project can be found on the Skyscraper City forum.
