Thames Gateway Kent
The Thames Gateway is Europe’s largest regeneration project covering an area stretching 40 miles along the Thames Estuary from London Docklands to Southend in Essex and Sheerness in Kent.
Kent Thameside
Encompassing the boroughs of Dartford and Gravesham, Kent Thameside has nine miles of waterfront, two historic town centres, and unrivalled transport links with central London and mainland Europe, centred around the new Ebbsfleet International Station.
Ebbsfleet International Station has been constructed by London & Continental Railways, the organisation responsible for delivering the UK’s first high speed line – High Speed 1 (formerly known as the Channel Tunnel Rail Link). Built with 500 tonnes of structural steel and 2,200m² (23,681ft²) of glass, the station was designed by Rail Link Engineering. Two platforms have been built for Eurostar services and four for high speed domestic journeys. New trains, capable of travelling at 186mph, will connect Ebbsfleet International to the continent from 19 November this year (Paris in 2h05, Brussels in 1h41, Lille in 1h10). High speed domestic services start in 2009, when the journey to London St Pancras International will take just 17 minutes.
Ebbsfleet Valley will be transformed by Land Securities into a vibrant mixed-use community, with up to 10,000 new homes and 836,127m² (9mft²) of offices, retail, leisure and community facilities. Land Securities and Countryside Properties have begun development of Springhead Park which will deliver up to 600 new homes including a 25% proportion of affordable housing, with the first units available in summer 2008.
In August 2007 a “roof tax” was agreed for developments in Kent Thameside meaning that the cost of transport improvements will be shared over the next 20 years between the house builders.
Crest Nicholson has created an integrated mixed-use community of 800 homes built around the fully restored Grade II listed Ingress Abbey. The next phase of homes will see the construction of contemporary apartments, shops and restaurants, all serviced by an extension of Fastrack, which will link Ingress Park to Dartford in the west and Ebbsfleet and Gravesend in the east.
Waterstone Park, a joint venture between Land Securities and Countryside Properties, is a residential scheme of 650 homes overlooking Bluewater and centred around the historic Stone Castle. The completed first phase consists of 201 homes and work is well underway on the second phase. The partners have also set up the Waterstone Park Community Fund, which has donated funds to a series of local charity and community projects through the Kent Community Foundation.
A £500m joint venture between Dartford Borough Council and ProLogis Developments Ltd, The Bridge is transforming a 264-acre brownfield site into a vibrant new community for Dartford. The first phase of new homes, being built by George Wimpey, is currently underway. The 2,787m² (30,000ft²) state-of-the-art innovation centre, The Nucleus, forming part of the science and technology space, is already open and being operated by START International. Bus stops, CCTV and a bridge over the M25 are all being put in place this year to support the Fastrack public transport system. |
Princess Park Stadium, Dartford
Princes Park Stadium, Dartford, opened in 2006. Designed by Alexander Sedgley, the building is the UK’s first sustainable small football stadium and is home to Dartford FC. The striking eco- design includes a host of sustainable features including solar panels, rainwater harvesting and green roof technology. The building has been shortlisted for the Kent Design Awards 2007.
Christian Fields in Gravesend is a £60m mixed-tenure development of 425 new homes by Moat Housing Group and Countryside Properties. The new homes will replace existing Gravesham Borough Council properties built in the 1940s. Work began in March 2007 and regeneration agency, English Partnerships has contributed £9.95m towards the delivery of the project.
Countryside Properties, in partnership with Gravesham Borough Council, is working to transform Gravesend’s disused industrial land and buildings into a £120m mixed-use regeneration scheme comprising 1,000 homes and 3,500m² (37,500ft²) of leisure, retail and recreational facilities. The first phase is well underway with 350 homes being built by Bellway Homes. Further work is being undertaken in partnership with Gravesham Borough Council, with the assistance of SEEDA, to review the planning framework for the remainder of the area to deliver a sustainable community.
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