Y:Cube Mitcham

Description

New homes are arranged across five buildings ranging between 1 and 12 storeys in height, together with 738 sq.m of flexible commercial floorspace (Shops (Use Class A1), Financial and Professional Services (Use Class A2) or Restaurants and Cafes (Use Class A3)) located in Building A and D; a community centre (of 1,105 sq.m located in Building a; a gym (of 117 sq.m) located in Building D and flexible commercial/nursery floorspace (of 197 sq.m) with associated hard and soft landscaping works and highways and infrastructure works. We recognised that Pembury Circus forms part of a wider neighbourhood - an intricate urban ecology comprised of buildings, people, and different activities. As a starting point, we used existing 'desire lines' and informal pedestrian routes across the site to help determine how to link the site to the surrounding area. Formalising these desire lines created three new routes through the site. The orientation and scale of the new buildings on the site reflect that of the surrounding urban grain, which is characterised by groups of buildings set around courtyards. Each new building formed a separate phase of development and was designed to minimise overlooking and overshadowing of the surrounding residential properties, whilst maximise the number of new homes. Building A is located in the south western corner of the site. It is set back from the site boundary, away from the existing London plane Trees that front the road junction and fronting the listed buildings in the Mare Street Conservation Area opposite. The buildings forms the backdrop to the new public route that runs diagonally across the site connecting Pembury road and Dalston Lane, which opens out in the centre of the site to provide new public space. Buildings B and C form the boundary to the northern parcel. They create a private landscaped courtyard, which provides communal amenity space for residents. Buildings D and E form the southern and western boundary of the easternmost parcel. They are positioned to form a private landscaped courtyard and play space and face out to the south and west onto the new public route through the site.

Planning History

Pembury Circus is a site which lies at the intersection of Dalston Lane and Pembury Road in Hackney. The site forms part of an area known as the Pembury Estate, which formed part of a stock transfer to Peabody from Hackney Council in March 2000. The existing buildings on the site were set out in a typical 'Radburn' layout, with large areas of under-utilised space. This part of the estate had become synonymous with drug taking and crime, with a transient population arising from sub-letting of leasehold accommodation. Residents were decanted and the buildings demolished in 2007 with a temporary landscaping scheme implemented whilst future plans for the site were considered. FBM were appointed by Peabody as architects in January 2008 to prepare regeneration proposals for the site following a two stage design and technical competition. FBM partnered with Bellway Homes to win the project.