Objection to demolition of London Museum and Bastion House

Dear Ms Delves,

Re: Objection to 23/01304/FULEIA, Demolition of 140 & 150 London Wall to provide a phased development

I have been contacted by residents raising deep concerns about this planning application, which proposes to demolish two internationally recognised icons of British post-war urban design. The Museum of London and Bastion House were designed by Owell & Moya, architects of the 1951 festival of Britain Skylon, and are integral to the Barbican’s world-famous townscape. To demolish them would be an act of cultural vandalism.

It would also be an act of carbon emissions self-sabotage.

To destroy these two buildings and construct replacements would release over 45,000 tonnes of CO2 into the atmosphere. This is not consistent with the City of London Corporation’s stated aim of achieving net zero carbon in its own operations by 2027, nor its commitment to achieve net zero for the Square Mile by 2040. Neither does it comply with the Mayor of London’s net zero target of 2030 for the whole of London.

Furthermore, assessments made by Simon Sturgis, Targeting Zero, and Bob Stagg, Conisbee Structural Engineering, of the reliability of the City of London’s Whole Life Carbon Assessment (WLCA) for the development, call into question the reasoning for the whole proposal. The Peer Review states:

“Their reports show that the WLCA is flawed and misleading. It is built on the assumption that Bastion House is at risk of disproportionate collapse. The review by Conisbee Structural Engineers emphatically contradicts this. The actual carbon assessment falls short as it does not consider the retention and retrofit of Bastion House and ignores the impact of its demolition on the scheme’s carbon footprint.”

I urge you to give due weight and regard to these objections to this application – along with the hundreds made by residents – and recommend that you do not approve it.

Yours sincerely,

Zack Polanski
Green Party Member of the London Assembly