Wharf Life Property Supplement, Mar 20-Apr 3, 2024

how St James’ Bow Green scheme aims to provide a tranquil, green home for its residents in the heart of east London

by Jon Massey

Integrated ovens with air fryer functionality, an Imax Enhanced cinema, a boxing ring, a botanical garden – Bow Green is not exactly short on stand-out resident amenities. There’s a sense that developer St James – part of the Berkeley Group – has pulled out all the stops for its east London scheme. However – while the underfloor heating, the indoor and outdoor swimming pools and a restaurant, with exterior tables shaded by living trees, are all significant pulls for buyers – there’s a deeper attraction too.

Berkeley isn’t new to this part of London, of course. Its schemes include South Quay Plaza beside Canary Wharf, London Dock in Wapping, Poplar Riverside overlooking the River Lea and TwelveTrees Park next to West Ham station.

But Bow Green’s location –roughly in the middle of the triangle formed by the Wharf, Stratford and the City – sets it apart. The site is at the centre of a wealth of green spaces, which have clearly been an inspiration for its architects and planners.

In the coming years, St James’ scheme will see up to 1,450 homes built on a patch of land off Bow Common Lane. At its heart, a new public park will be created, with residential buildings arranged around the site’s perimeter. Pathways and green corridors between them will allow easy access for pedestrians, cyclists and, doubtless, wildlife.

An abundance of green spaces radiate out from this epicentre –not least the sprawling acreage of Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park, Ackroyd Drive Greenlink and the emerald swathe of Mile End Park, which runs north to south along the Regent’s Canal.

Travel a little further and Bow Common and Bartlett Park lie to the south, while Victoria Park, the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park and Hackney Marshes beckon to the north.

“One of the key things that we wanted to establish early on at Bow Green is this connection to the those spaces,” said Katie Thompson, sales and marketing director at St James.

“We’ve got the 27 acres of Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park right opposite the site and, when you look at a map, you see this

£395,000

Starting

part of London has an unusually high number of these open spaces. Our development is hugged by green and what we’re doing is plugging into that by creating our own sculpted park at Bow Green.”

Berkeley has serious history in creating such spaces. There’s Maribor Park at Royal Arsenal Riverside with its delta-style water feature and the playful Cator Park at Kidbrooke Village, which won both the Sir David Attenborough Award for enhancing biodiversity and The President’s Award at The Landscape Institute Awards in 2020.

For Bow Green, environmental artist Chris Drury has come up with a curvaceous green amphitheatre that will feature a stepped fountain. It sits amid a network of tree-lined pathways and wildflower beds.

“We wanted to give the development something that had a pull both for people living here but also for the wider community,” said Katie. “There’s a responsibility as a developer for how we activate that space – do we host fairs or performances, for example? What we can do with that space is create moments.

“The other lovely thing is that the park will look and feel completely different whether you’re in it or looking down from one of the apartments.”

Habitation is, naturally, at the core of St James’ design, with Bow Green pitched as a tranquil space for residents to live, which is nevertheless well connected via the Tube from Mile End or Bow Road or the DLR from Devons Road.

Delivered in five phases, the first will see an extensive array of residents facilities built alongside the initial complement of apartments. So what’s it going to be like living at Bow Green?

“When you think of east London, it’s often the towers of Canary Wharf or the older housing estates with highrise blocks, but Bow Green is completely different,” said Jess Chapple, head of sales at St James.

“Here the development is very much intertwined with nature – it’s 50% green space – and the design is also sympathetic to the area and its heritage.

“Here people are buying into a place where the city and nature blend together. I imagine someone

nature all around

An artist’s impression of how The Canopy restaurant and cafe will look at Bow Green

working in Canary Wharf, Stratford or the City who wants to come home and feel like they’ve got everything on their doorstep, with green space and residents’ facilities brought to them through careful design.

“While they’re surrounded by that golden triangle, when they come here they’ll be taking a step back from the hustle and bustle, while still being in a Zone 2 location.

“The apartments themselves range from studios to three-bedroom homes with specifications that are the result of everything St James has learnt about design, including during 10 years of its scheme in White City.

“That means every apartment has things like coat storage, while studios have separate sleeping areas – we’ve really thought about how people will live in these spaces.

“For us, it’s about constantly evaluating what we’re offering right up until launch, to make sure we’re keeping up with trends in the market and that, ultimately, people will be happy in their homes.”

With extensive planting, landscaping and a wealth of amenities, life at Bow Green promises to be filled with diversions. The spa at the development will feature both indoor and outdoor heated swimming pools, connected visually through large, full-height windows.

Residents will also have access to a fully-equipped gym, which

At Bow Green we’re offering a different kind of lifestyle –this place is tranquil and the facilities are outstanding

Jess Chapple, St James

includes a boxing ring alongside treadmills, weights and heavy bags. The Garden Room will act as a games space, complete with foosball and pool tables, while The Reading Corner promises a place for residents to work, take in a good book or simply watch people pass by.

“When you look at the detail of our plans, there are lots of little nooks and seats for people to use,” said Katie. “The way life is now, people will pause and take a laptop out anywhere and we’re thinking about those moments.”

On a more leisurely note, Bow Green will also be the first development in the UK to feature an Imax Enhanced cinema for residents to use – a significant boost in quality and picture definition for those who enjoy a good movie.

Then there’s Bow Yard, a public, cobbled outdoor space that will be home to markets and The Canopy restaurant and cafe. This will feature plentiful greenery, foliage-shaded outdoor seating and dishes made with some ingredients grown in the residents’ botanical garden – a raised space which will be used to cultivate

fruit trees and herbs. As if that wasn’t enough, there will also be a convenience store on site and a 24-hour concierge service that links residents up to the various amenities.

Transport-wise, the development offers Tube and DLR connections within walking distance and multiple bus stops nearby.

“There are also lots of cycling routes nearby including on the canal to Victoria Park and one that’s less than 10 minutes to Canary Wharf said Jess. “You can walk there in 25 minutes and there are also places to hire bikes and cars locally if residents need them.

As well as being better value than many Zone 2 developments, we’re also offering a different kind of lifestyle – this place is tranquil and the facilities are outstanding.”

St James is currently marketing homes off-plan in the first phase of Bow Green.

key details

Prices at Bow Green start at £395,000 for a studio, £465,000 for a one-bed and £650,000 for a two-bed. Three-bedroom homes will also be available as further properties are released. Service charges are estimated at £4.85 per sq ft. First completions are expected in 2026. Interested parties can call St James on 020 3814 8110 or find out more online. Go to bowgreen.co.uk for more information

Scan this code for more about the Bow Green development

Bow Green is located a nine-minute cycle ride from Canary Wharf or a 25-minute walk

An artist’s impression of the outdoor pool area

The new public park at Bow Green

The development will boast extensive facilities

An artist’s impression of the scheme’s first phase

how shared ownership can deliver stability and community at Square Roots Lewisham

by Jon Massey

Being a tenant in London can feel like you’re on a treadmill that it’s impossible to get off. You work hard just to stay in the same place, with money simply disappearing from your account each month. For that, you get a roof over your head and a property maintained, but seldom improved. Rent’s expensive too, making saving cash for a deposit challenging at the best of times.

It’s a precarious situation, with rent rises and landlords selling up a constant reminder that a rapid house move may always be in the pipeline, with comparatively little notice. Without capital or the means to build it up, the dream of home ownership can easily seem just that, a fantasy.

There is, however, another way. Affordable housing providers are increasingly holding up shared ownership deals as a mirror to renting. Buyers can purchase 25% or more of a property with a mortgage while paying a capped rent on the remainder.

That typically means a much lower deposit than buying outright, plus lower monthly outgoings than comparable properties up for rent.

“It’s the biggest selling point,” said Kate McLure, regional sales manager for south London at London Square. “As a developer that’s all about creating communities, it was quite apparent to us that there were a large number of people in the capital who want to purchase a property but aren’t able to get on the ladder. Your average Londoner who works in the city often isn’t able to buy on the open market.

“That’s why we set up Square Roots as an accredited affordable housing provider, so we could offer shared ownership to those people. The products that we’re building are similar in terms of specification – really this is about opening up opportunities for people to get access to these homes.”

Square Roots Lewisham recently launched, a scheme of 141 apartments with one, two and three-bedroom homes available on a shared ownership basis. Prices start at £106,250 for a 25% share in a one-bed with a full market value of £425,000.

The scheme is located within walking distance of both rail and DLR services at Lewisham station beside the River Ravensbourne.

“The products we’re building at Square Roots are similar in specification to those we’re selling through London Square,” said Kate. “Square Roots is really about opening up opportunities for people to be able to purchase these homes.

“The aim is that they can then staircase their share in the property until they own the whole thing.

What we find is that a lot of people come to us who are renting privately in the surrounding areas and are paying more every month than they would on a mortgage payment and rent combined through shared ownership.”

the maths

To illustrate that point, we took a deep dive into the figures to see how the entry level one-bed at Square Roots Lewisham stacks up against a similar flat available for rent in the area.

Using Square Roots’ affordability calculator, buyers of the £425,000 one-bed can expect a monthly cost of £1,531. That figure includes a

£5,313

An artist’s impression of how Square Roots Lewisham will look when finished

buying that

security

in focus

one-bed apartment at Square Roots Lewisham

The entry-level one-bed apartment at Square Roots Lewisham comes with a fully-fitted kitchen, balcony, open-plan living area and built-in storage in the bedroom. Here are a few quick fire facts:

l Total size: 551sq ft

l Leasehold term: 990 years

l Time to Canary Wharf: 18 minutes (from station)

l Total value: £425,000

l Estimate monthly cost: £1,531

l Time to cycle to Greenwich Park: 12 minutes

l Train travel to Cannon Street: 20 minutes

Scan this code to find out more about shared ownership properties available at Square Roots Lewisham and the various costs involved in purchasing an apartment

A show home interior at Square Roots Lewisham

mortgage payment of £658 based on a 25 year term with a 5% deposit of £5,313. Then there’s £730 of rent, payable on the 75% owned by Square Roots at a rate of 2.75% of its value. The remainder – £143 – is the estimated service charge for the 551sq ft property, at £3.13 per sq ft.

In contrast, a slightly smaller rental flat (538sq ft) at a similar distance from the station costs £1,575 per month to rent.

“The other thing you get with shared ownership, which is really quite different to private rent, is security,” said Kate. “It’s not like being a tenant. You don’t have to ask your landlord for permission to decorate or be worried about not getting your deposit back if you put picture hooks in the walls.

“It’s your property – you can do what you want with it, even though you’re sharing the ownership with the housing provider. You have that stability in knowing you won’t have to move and it works out as more affordable than renting.

“At Square Roots Lewisham, we’ve been very mindful not to build too many amenities into the scheme that would potentially make the service charge too expensive for people buying here.

“It’s right next to Lewisham town centre, so there are plenty of gyms, services, shops, restaurants and bars for buyers to enjoy. It’s a responsibility for us to attract as wide a customer base as possible and we don’t want to price people out.

“We want buyers to have the choice about what to spend their money on after they have moved in, rather than making assumptions about what they want.”

With parent company London Square’s name an homage to the communal outdoor spaces in the older parts of the city, Square Roots offers a communal roof garden on the fifth floor of its Lewisham scheme.

As an ongoing shared ownership partner with buyers, it will also host a customer community committee so residents will have a voice in how things are run on a long-term basis.

“It’s very much a collaborative effort,” said Kate. “People will have a say and that say matters. I think shared ownership still needs demystifying to some extent. The process can seem overwhelming to first-time buyers, so I would always invite them to come and talk to us. We can then put them in touch with independent financial advisers who can help them to see what they can afford.”

Go to squareroots.co.uk for more information