Designer describes scheme as 鈥渆mpty, cynical and vacuous鈥� and calls for design to be scrapped
Designer Thomas Heatherwick has made an outspoken attack on the Royal Mail鈥檚 planned redevelopment of its Mount Pleasant sorting office in London.
The designer has thrown his weight behind a local campaign to stop the scheme designed by AHMM, Allies & Morrison, Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios and Wilkinson Eyre.
The Royal Mail is proposing to build homes, shops, offices, restaurants and public space on half of the site currently occupied by its Mount Pleasant sorting office in Farringdon.
The remaining half will continue as a postal sorting office employing up to 3,000 people.
Boris Johnson called in the planning application for review last month, after the client fell into disagreement with Islington and Camden councils, the local planning authorities.
Now in a to the two local authorities involved, Heatherwick has branded the proposals 鈥渆mpty, cynical and vacuous鈥� and 鈥渄ownright lazy鈥� and insisted London could do better.
He called for a replacement scheme that could serve as an 鈥渆xemplar of innovation and good urban design鈥�, that was a model of good practice in the design of public realm, and that was grounded in the site鈥檚 history and community.
The Mount Pleasant proposals made national headlines after Royal Mail appealed directly to the mayor of London, Boris Johnson, to intervene because it said the planning authorities 鈥� Camden and Islington 鈥� were dragging their heels.
Johnson agreed, prompting local Labour MP Emily Thornberry to extract a promise from David Cameron to look at the case.
Heatherwick鈥檚 strongly worded objection was posted on the website of community campaign group Mount Pleasant Forum.
In it he says: 鈥淚 have no objection to either the development of this site or to a high-density solution, but this proposal is downright lazy 鈥� cheap, bland, generic and misconceived.
鈥淟ondon is the thought-leading capital of the world and this precious site sits in a prominent position near its heart.
鈥淎s the designer of the New Bus for London and co-originator of the current proposal to build a Garden Bridge across the Thames, I am personally engaged in the strategic effort to create a better public realm for this city. In this capacity and as a local resident and employer, I believe London can and must do better than this.鈥�
He signs off saying: 鈥淭he developer is going to make a vast amount of money from this project, but what is being offered in return is empty, cynical and vacuous鈥� I implore you to listen to local people and reject this shoddy proposal.鈥�
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