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25 Jul 2014
Mixed-use floating village in east London nears planning stage
By Jak Phillips
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An artist's impression of the 'floating village', with the Emirates Airline cable car in the left middle-ground
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Britain’s first ‘floating village’ project in east London’s Royal Docks has edged closer to fruition, after Mayor of London Boris Johnson announced Carillion Igloo Genesis had won the competition to design and build the mixed-use scheme.
Carillion Igloo Genesis – a consortium of the constructor Carillion, Igloo regeneration fund and Genesis Housing Association – will work off designs from co-architects dRMM and Marlies Rhomer to realise the Mayor’s ambition of "breathing new life back into London’s waterways.”
The floating village was inspired by a similar project carried out at ljburg near Amsterdam, which Rhomer also worked on. Plans include a floating Lido and an ice rink, as well as 50 homes, a large multi-purpose events space and a mix of non-residential uses including restaurants, cafes, shops, plus leisure and office space.
Carillion Igloo Genesis’ submission is 100 per cent floating, with the walkways, residential and non-residential units anchored in place using a series of piles located within the dock and connected to the dock by bridges.
The floating water-homes will use the same concrete foundations that are already in use at the Ijburg development in Holland. The construction of the homes, including the bases, will be carried out off-site and then transported by water to site. A planning application is expected to be submitted to Newham Council in Spring 2015.
“This site has the potential to become one of the most sought after addresses in the capital while breathing new life back into London’s waterways,” said Johnson.
“Carillion Igloo Genesis’ scheme will create a unique mixed-use development, providing a range of commercial activities within a high quality water environment for Londoners and visitors, creating jobs and raising the profile of London’s Royal Docks.”
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