23a George Street, Croydon, CR0
Mark Fairhurst Architects has received the ‘go-ahead’ for an ingenious mixed-use development in a unique Croydon town centre location. The new mews scheme will provide seven maisonettes above independent work spaces allowing for a live-work community whilst generating a new urban thoroughfare acting as transition between the old town and the future Westfield Centre redevelopment.
The site is immediately adjacent in the Central Croydon Conservation Area and adjoins the Grade II listed building Electric House. It is located behind a series of nineteenth century terraces in George Street and accessed through an historic carriageway. The existing warehouse buildings although occupied underutilise both potential jobs and accommodation for a city centre location.
Minimising overlooking, ensuring the adequate day lighting of the new maisonettes whilst respecting that of the neighbours and addressing the connection to both the George Street and the planned shopping centre were crucial factors in how to approach the design.
The mews is formed form a series of discrete volumes connected by lower and submissive infill volumes with terraces at roof level. These volumes taper at ground floor level, to maximise the width of the pedestrianised mews whilst allowing sufficient space to accommodate the residential units in the upper levels. At roof level the volumes are crowned by four sided pitched roofs with skylights at the highest level which help to reduce the sense of enclosure of the massing, introduce natural daylight to the interior of the flats, and create a distinctive identity whilst being respectful of the Conservation Area and Listed Building.
The cladding will alternate between brick, tiles and corrugated steel referencing materials currently present in the mews providing individuality and identity to the works spaces and flats. The infill volumes will be clad with horizontal blackened timber slats.
The developer AssetRock and Croydon Council were supportive of an innovative contemporary design solution for this constrained site; following positive pre-planning discussions the project received planning permission under delegated powers in November.
Saeed Khaliq director of AssetRock said ‘We have a vision and want to support the regeneration in Croydon and appreciate the support Croydon Council have given us.’
The scheme will be a positive addition to the Croydon town centre providing a vibrant work-live environment, which can improve the pedestrian connectivity and enhance the urban experience between George Street and the future shopping centre.
The video link below gives an idea of how the future experience of walking through the mews will be.
https://www.youtube.com/edit?o=U&video_id=btLJKiYhNDY