60-70 St Mary Axe

City of London

Tall building in the City of London with 24 storeys for commercial use. Designed by Foggo Associates.

Summary

Although it is significantly taller than the existing buildings on the site we have no reservations about the height of the tower. However, we believe that the key concept of the proposal as a single pure form has compromised the design, in particular the relationship of the building to the street. We are not convinced by the rationale for the elliptical section and feel that it creates an uncomfortable and unattractive form both at street level and on the city skyline.

Form

We have fundamental concerns about the extruded elliptical form proposed. We are uneasy with the views looking east and west along Bevis Marks, in which the north-west and south-east facing elliptical gable-end elevations are visible. In proportion to its height the ellipse is too wide and the form does not integrate comfortably with its context. The echo of the elliptical section of 30 St Mary Axe is unfortunate; the parallel will be immediately apparent.

We support the approach to the height of the proposal, which is limited by the strategic view of the Tower of London from Tower Bridge.

Public realm

Improvements to the public realm are stated as the justification for the elliptical section. However, part of the additional width created at pavement level is taken up by a planter and the building will overhang the pavement reducing the perception of spaciousness for pedestrians. The same pavement width could have been created by pulling the entire building line back from the edge of pavement. As a concept, therefore, we do not find it a convincing rationale for generation of the building form and do not believe that the public realm created will be a significant enough improvement to offset the negative impact of the tower's form and façade treatment at street level.

The stringency of the vertical fin treatment on the south-west and north-east elevations appears to be dictating the circulation at ground level. In the area around  the site, office and retail entrances are typically on the main east-west routes of Bevis Marks and Houndsditch or on building corners, with service access from the quieter side streets. We question the assertion that St Mary Axe is the primary pedestrian route past this site. The decision to locate the office and retail entrances on St Mary Axe and Goring Street respectively is, therefore, at odds with the usual practice and concentration of street activity locally. By positioning the entrances on the side streets, where you would least expect them, the legibility of the building is reduced. The deep fins themselves create rather closed elevations that will limit the visual interaction between the ground floor and the street, and constrain the views out from the offices on the upper floors. We feel that the combined effect of the entrance strategy and fin treatment is unsuccessful:  removing activity from Houndsditch and Bevis Marks will only exacerbate the hostile street environment.

Environmental strategy

We question the effectiveness of the solar shading proposed. Despite the vertical fins to the south-west and north-east elevations, we suggest that there will be direct sun entering the building at certain times of day and the cooling load will be calculated on this peak demand. We recommend that the local authority requests that the applicants put forward an environmental strategy for cooling and ventilation of the offices that does not rely on air conditioning.

Conclusion

Whilst we have every confidence that Foggo Associates can produce a well detailed commercial building, we have serious reservations about the fundamental design principles of the proposal and, therefore, we cannot support the planning application.