Sharp Edged
Evening Standard, Homes & Property, 23rd April 2008Before Canary Wharf become the economic engine of east London, the best address on the Isle of Dogs was Westferry Road, a long riverside strip with views across the Thames to Rotherhithe and Greenwich.
During the Docklands construction boom of the eighties, developers scrambled for sites there. The river front was the natural place for swish new flats. Alas, the legacy is a dense cluster of river facing apartment blocks of no real architectural merit. At the time there was no Canary Wharf skyline inland to admire (now a big influence on value). Boxy on site social housing was built behind the riverside flats, backing on to Westferry Road. This created an uninspiring streetscape with little sense of arrival.
When Canary Wharf took off as a major commercial hub in the late Nineties, the nearest flats became the most sought after. These were more glamorous and more convenient for highly paid bankers and lawyers working long hours. More distant flats along Westferry Road, dislocated from the action, lagged behind the price.
This price gap still exists, as shown by The Forge, being built on one of the last remaining development sites in Westferry Road. Prices start at £235,000 (for a studio). This site is not river facing but has a heritage bonus, a listed ironworks where the hull was made for Isambard Kingdom Brunel’s famous ship SS Great Britain. When launched in 1858, it was the biggest steamship in the world. It can now be found, beautifully restored, in Bristol.
Glenkerrin, the developer of The Forge, says the homes are aimed at Canary Wharf workers, "troops rather than big shots", who cannot afford the likes of Pan Peninsula, a glitzy residential skyscraper on Marsh Wall where studios cost from £356,000.
The average price of a new flat in E14 in 2007 was £369,000, 20 per cent more than the London average, according to research by estate agents Savills. About 95,000 people now work at Canary Wharf, underpinning demand for local homes. But with the financial sector reeling at present, Savills warns of a possible oversupply.
Thirteen developments are in the pipeline, with potential to deliver 5,800 new homes over the next five years.
Glenkerrin will no doubt argue that The Forge stands out as decent value in these straitened times. The scheme incoporates some small commercial units, which will help animate the location. Call 0207 531 2510.
An unusual example of workers’ housing is coming to a site close to the Olympic Park in Stratford. The Edge, a venture by developer Thornsett Group and the Worshipful Company of Carpenters, will have 10 of its 64 flats earmarked of trainee carpenters.
The "open market" flats are priced from £250,000 and will include penthouses with double height interiors.
Completion is due July 2009. Call 0207 843 9500.