16 - 07 - 2020
BPTW have submitted masterplan proposals to regenerate over 12 hectares of former industrial land at Northfleet in Kent – forming a sustainable new riverfront neighbourhood within the Ebbsfleet Garden City. Designed on behalf of Bellway, the housing-led masterplan sets out detailed proposals for up to 532 new homes. The project marks the expansion of the practice’s portfolio across the Thames Gateway and Medway, including our award winning Rochester Riverside where BPTW’s ongoing urban extension to Rochester includes over 500 homes.
The existing site is characterised by its location on the south bank of the Thames Estuary, where remains of its industrial past sit alongside chalk cliffs, escarpments and large areas of vegetation containing a wealth of wildlife habitats. BPTW have devised a series of architectural character areas that respond to their locations within the masterplan, and which combine to form a cohesive network of streets and open spaces. The built forms, heights and material palettes of each character area take inspiration from the area’s industrial heritage while supporting the broader vision for Ebbsfleet Garden City.
The site’s 532 homes contain a mixture of apartments and houses ranging from 1-bed flats to 4-bed houses to suit a wide range of different households. 30% of homes are designated affordable housing. Densities range from 40 to 80 dwellings per hectare across the site, thereby supporting the creation of varied and interesting streetscapes.
The massing and urban grain of the masterplan responds to the site’s gentle slope towards the River Thames. Taller buildings are concentrated nearer the river to maximise river views, and set back from the shoreline to provide for a new riverside park and promenade – part of a wider strategy to reconnect Ebbsfleet with the Thames, and to allow the riverfront to become a leisure destination within the wider Garden City. Corridors of existing planting will be maintained and enhanced, including on the chalk cliffs that frame the site, broad tree-lined streets are orientated towards the river, provide unobstructed vistas throughout the neighbourhood. To the east of the site, a large new park will form an important recreational space, incorporating an array of wildlife habitats alongside relics of the site’s industrial past including tunnel entrances set into the chalk cliffs.
Ian Cooper, Land Director at Bellway, said:
“Bellway are delighted to be working with BPTW, Ebbsfleet Development Corporation and Gravesend Borough Council in delivering a high quality housing led scheme at Northfleet. Together we will provide a wide range of much-needed new homes, in a setting that combines careful placemaking, contemporary design and respect for the location’s rich natural and industrial heritage.”
