Community group claims Rafael Vinoly's eco-tower at Battersea will ruin the historic views of Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament.
Campaigners protesting about Rafael Vinoly’s plans for Battersea Power Station have warned that the scheme could have a ‘devastating impact’ on the Houses of Parliament and Westminster World Heritage site.
The Battersea Power Station Community Group (BPSCG) has even drawn up an image (see below) showing how the development’s 300m-high chimney would ‘loom’ over the UNESCO-protected Palace of Westminster when seen from Hungerford Bridge on London’s South Bank.
The tower, which sits over an ‘eco dome’ covering 250,000m2 of offices, is a keystone of the £4 billion overhaul of Giles Gilbert Scott’s abandoned Grade II*-listed power station.
A spokesman for the group said: ‘Our contention is that the impact of the tower on the Palace of Westminster and the Westminster World Heritage Site would be catastrophic.
‘It seems highly unlikely that the tower would ever receive planning permission.’
However, a spokesman for developer Real Estate Opportunities (REO), which is managed by Irish-based developer Treasury Holdings, has played down the claims, saying the group's artist impressions do not show the real picture.
He said: ‘This is not an accurate representation of how the development will look... the group has pasted a view of the chimney from the north bank of the Embankment opposite the power station, which was included as part of our launch material in June this year, into a completely different and longer view of the Houses of Parliament.