Chelsea residents campaign against ‘local institution’ Marks & Spencer set to be demolished

By Adrian Zorzut, Local Democracy Reporter

A plan to demolish an M&S to build office space has been slammed by residents who claim there is already enough in the area.

Chelsea residents say the “behemoth” office block along King’s Road will be an eyesore with Smith Street Residents Association fighting the plans to build a replacement unit to house a smaller version of the existing M&S and other shops.

Christine Morrissey, secretary of the association, claimed residents located next to office buildings struggled to sleep because of the 24/7 light pollution.

She said: “If this is what is happening to mansion block residents, we worry about how much worse it will be for our low built single-family homes surrounding the M&S King’s Road site.”

The vocal local campaigner said their M&S at 81-103 King’s Road was a “local institution” and current plans meant it wouldn’t be able to return to its original size.

She said: “It is also an important employer. These social places, where people from all walks feel welcome, are disappearing.”

Graham Love, who lives around the corner, claimed residents have spent thousands of pounds on expert advice to counter what he called the overdevelopment of King’s Road.

He said: “This proposed building will be a behemoth, towering over the surrounding listed and heritage low rise buildings in the conservation area which give this part of Chelsea its character.

“Residents have joined forces to fight it because we do not want to see overseas owners profiting from overdevelopment at the expense of local residents and future generations.”

Architects Pilbrow & Partners’ submitted plans to turn the King’s Road address, which houses Holland & Barrett, a restaurant and apartments, into a modern five-storey office block decked with plush landscaped balconies and clad in light-toned bricks.

According to a report by Kensington and Chelsea council, 1,365 objections and a petition were made against the application over its size and look.

It also recently caught the attention of local MP Greg Hands who said bulldozing the building would go against local planning policy.

The council said the project provided high quality office blocks in line with the context of the neighbouring area and should go ahead.

But objectors like the Chelsea Society disagree. They said the extra storey would make the new building “excessively dominant” in the local area.

The West London charity claimed there would also be “an unacceptable level” of congestion and pollution along King’s Road during construction, which one resident dubbed as the “road rage capital of London”.

Jennifer Grossman heads the local campaign group Save King’s Road and has been fighting hard against the development.

Ms Grossman said: “This major development, if approved, will irrevocably alter the face of the King’s Road and set a precedent for similar developments leading to such monolithic structures built all along this iconic street.”

She said residents are happy to see change that fits with the surrounding area, adding: “It’s not about NIMBYism, it’s about the impact it is having on the road. It’s about our community as well as the redevelopment of the site.”

In its report, Kensington and Chelsea council said: “Whilst the development would add additional height and massing to the application site, this would be design-led, in line with the contextual townscape and the approach would optimise the capacity of the site and the proposed building would improve the legibility of the built form.”

The council will decide whether to grant permission tomorrow and refer its decision to the Mayor of London who has 14 days to respond.

An M&S spokesman said: “After some tough and drawn-out negotiations, we are delighted to have reached an agreement in principle with the landlord of our King’s Road store.

“This means that M&S will remain on the site if their proposed redevelopment gets the go-ahead at Thursday’s planning committee meeting.”

Pictured top: Residents standing outside the M&S on King’s Road, which will temporarily shut if the construction goes ahead (Picture: Adrian Zorzut)