Sneak peak at Earls Court £8bn ‘zero carbon’ regeneration scheme
A derelict exhibition centre in Earls Court is set to be transformed into a £8bn zero carbon neighbourhood with a raised urban park bigger than Trafalgar Square.
The 40 acre site in Zone 1, which was once home to the Brit Awards, was crushed in 2015 but now its new developers have plans to transform it into a hub which will host 4,500 new homes and both a leisure and events space.
First CGI images of the regenerated site show landscaped piazzas, public gardens, alongside a host of new businesses.
Its developers, The Earls Court Development Company (ECDC), described the project as central London’s “most significant redevelopment opportunity”.
The plan will evolve over the course of 2023 with a planning application due to be submitted by the end of the year.
The first phase of development, comprising 1,300 homes, the park and east-west connections will commence in 2025.
A new skills centre will also open on site in the spring of 2023, beginning to offer training opportunities to local people.
The development group also said that some 15,000 jobs will be created with the site becoming a “research and development hub” for green tech – with the group hoping to attract businesses which have a role in “transforming the future by responding to the climate crisis”.
ECDC said that the “aspiration” is for the development to incorporate the first large scale zero carbon energy sharing network in the UK, enabling local people to benefit from cost effective heat networks.
Rob Heasman, CEO of ECDC, said: “We want to create a place which reinstates ‘wonder’ in this incredible part of London. We will help to create a more inclusive and equitable piece of city with homes for all incomes and stages of life, and thousands of jobs from training to start up to scale up.
“The development will integrate culture and public realm throughout, responding to the number one stated desire from local people; to have green and open spaces across the site. We have an ambition to be a global exemplar of responsible, sustainable development, putting people’s health and well-being first.”
It comes as there has been a significant number of developments across London over the past few years.
These include the Kings Cross development which transformed an underused industrial site into a rejuvenated area which now houses offices from Google.
Furthermore, last year Battersea Power Station was reopened to the public after 40 years, when the abandoned coal-fired power station, was transformed into a shopping centre and apartment complex.