316 – 340 Southbury Road, Enfield EN1 1TS

Regeneration proposals for the commercial-led redevelopment of a site at the junction of Southbury Road and Crown Road, Enfield are currently at draft design stage.

This consultation website has been launched on behalf of the new owners, Urban Prop 4 SARL, the trading name of Greater London Industrial (GLi), one of the UK’s largest privately owned development companies and a specialist in logistics warehousing. It provides key information on their proposals, helping local residents, neighbours and other interest groups find out more about the emerging plans and provide their feedback.

Existing condition

Located at the junction of Southbury Road and Crown Road around a mile to the east of Enfield Town and within a short walking distance of Southbury Road railway station, the proposed site is within the established Strategic Industrial Location (SIL). This means that it is specifically designated as a preferred location in London for industrial uses. Its current condition does not meet the requirements of modern industrial and logistics occupiers.

The most recent uses of the site have been for car sales, vehicle repairs and servicing, industrial activities and trade counter sales.

The 3.04 acres (1.23 hectares) brownfield site has been acquired over time from different owners and the emerging proposals seek to make the best and most efficient use of it. There are a number of aged buildings at the site in a degraded condition which do not present a very attractive streetscene for this prominent part of Southbury Road and Crown Road.

The principal surrounding uses are industrial or logistics based including the Waitrose distribution centre opposite the site on Southbury Road known as Heritage House, the Grade II Listed former Ripaults factory to the east on Crown Road and occupied by Travis Perkins, the newly developed trade counter units immediately to the north on Crown Road and the brand new ‘Edge’ warehouse development to the west on Baird Road (some 14 metres in height to its ridge).

The nearest residential properties to the site are located immediately to the east on Southbury Road in Henkel House, a former office block that has been converted under permitted development rights and currently extra storeys are under construction to provide additional accommodation.

Key features of the proposed development

GLi has given a brief to the UMC architectural practice to deliver a new state-of-the-art logistics facility of exemplary design and environmental sustainability which is best in class in the industrial and logistics sector.

The proposed development by GLi will add to others either recently completed or under construction in Park Royal, London and Croydon.

The proposal has been the subject of pre-application dialogue over recent months with the London Borough of Enfield and is to demolish all of the existing buildings at the site (around 7,593 sq. m Gross External Area) and replace them with a total of 8,673 sq. m GEA of flexible logistics and/or industrial floor area with ancillary office space.

The proposed layout plan envisages three units along the western edge of the site extending northwards adjacent to Crown Road and a further three units on the eastern edge of the site extending northwards adjacent to Henkel House and the new ‘Edge’ development on Baird Road. A range of unit sizes is proposed that will be attractive to small and medium-sized businesses.

The proposed materials include horizontal banding cladding on the side and northern elevations with glazing primarily located on the Southbury Road frontage to create interest and animation of the buildings. Further windows feature in the offices facing the internal service yard/parking.

The proposed height of the units is 13.4 metres, giving an internal clear heigh of 10 metres to meet modern commercial needs.

The building closest to the nearest residential units at Henkel House is drawn back from the existing building line by just over 3.7m to provide an 8.65m separation distance. There are no windows in western flank of the proposed building, so there will be no overlooking issues. Daylight and sunlight issues have also been considered in the height and siting of the proposed building to minimise any impacts.

Each unit will incorporate office accommodation at first floor level facing an internal yard providing safe servicing for the units along with 39 dedicated car parking spaces. The car parking will include 20% active electric vehicle spaces. 22 secure and sheltered cycle spaces will be provided along with 14 short-stay cycle spaces.

The access to the internal yard will be uniquely off Southbury Road and this will be designed to ensure that it can operate safely and offer the required visibility when entering or leaving. The access will incorporate a pedestrian refuse to ensure that pedestrians can cross safely along the northern side of Southbury Road.

Security of the site will be assured by a perimeter fence and the vehicular and pedestrian entrances will be gated. The new buildings will create a secure line along both Southbury Road and Crown Road to ensure a welcoming street scene on both roads.

The site benefits from good access to public transport (PTAL 4) with bus stops and the railway station within easy walking distance. This means that both staff and visitors to the completed development will not need to rely on private vehicles to reach it.

The existing soft landscaping to the site is very limited with only poor quality trees. The proposal seeks to introduce generous landscaping along both Southbury Road and Crown Road where proposed tree and shrub planting will create a positive green frontage to the road.

In addition, vertical green walls will feature on the facades of the buildings, softening the built form and providing visual interest particularly to the Crown Road, Southbury Road junction. Further areas of planting have also been added within rain gardens in the internal parking area, contributing to water management and providing additional greening within the hardstanding. These aim to meet the placemaking ambititions of Enfield Council for Southbury Road and also respond positively to similar initiatives proposed for the redevelopment of Heritage House.

In sustainability terms, the building aims to be ‘Excellent’ as defined by the Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM) and also net zero carbon in construction. Other environmentally sustainable measures include green roofs to cycle stores/bin stores, sustainable urban drainage (SUDS) through permeable external surfaces and green living walls on the facades of the proposed buildings and use of efficient energy. Solare panels are also planned for the roof areas, providing a valuable source of renewable energy and reducing carbon emissions.

Economic benefits

The proposal represents a significant piece of new investment in regeneration located within Enfield’s Strategic Industrial Location. Key benefits which will result from the development include:

• £16.9m investment in construction
• 50 construction jobs
• 140 jobs created by the completed development
• £5 million wages boost annually through the uplift in jobs post development
• £7.1 million annually in economic productivity post development