{"id":751851,"date":"2024-08-13T09:27:58","date_gmt":"2024-08-13T08:27:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/?p=751851"},"modified":"2024-08-14T08:42:53","modified_gmt":"2024-08-14T07:42:53","slug":"chipperfields-chinese-embassy-plans-resubmitted","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/news\/chipperfields-chinese-embassy-plans-resubmitted","title":{"rendered":"Chipperfield\u2019s Chinese Embassy plans resubmitted"},"content":{"rendered":"

The scheme, for a 2.3ha plot opposite Tower Bridge, was thought to have been abandoned by the Chinese government a year ago. It was resubmitted to Tower Hamlets Council last month.<\/p>\n

It consists of accommodation, offices and a cultural centre for the Chinese Embassy, and proposes reusing a range of existing buildings on the former Royal Mint site, opposite the Tower of London, a UNESCO world heritage site.<\/p>\n

The Chinese Embassy said in the resubmitted planning documents that the reasons for refusal by Tower Hamlets in December 2022 were \u2018without merit and have no basis in planning policy\u2019 and that it was asking for the plans to be reconsidered.<\/p>\n

Reasons for the rejection included potential harm to surrounding heritage assets such as the Tower of London, and the impact of the development on residents of the neighbouring Royal Mint Estate. Planning officers had described the scheme as \u2018well-designed\u2019 and recommended its approval.<\/p>\n

Opposition was also mounted by protesters and local politicians due to China\u2019s repression of the predominantly Muslim Uyghur people \u2013 with David Chipperfield criticised for accepting the commission (Is the new Chinese embassy Chipperfield’s most controversial job?<\/a>).<\/p>\n

The Mayor of London upheld the decision in February 2023. China then missed a deadline in August 2023 to appeal to the planning inspectorate, apparently ending the years-long planning saga.<\/p>\n

At the time, a Chinese Embassy spokesperson urged the UK government to \u2018fulfil its relevant international obligations\u2019 over the project, saying: \u2018It is the international obligation of the host country to provide facilitations and support for the construction of diplomatic premises.\u2019<\/p>\n

If an appeal had been lodged last year, the final decision would have been made by the then communities secretary Michael Gove. The new application was made two weeks after Labour won the general election.<\/p>\n

Chipperfield\u2019s plans include refurbishing the Grade II*-listed Johnson Smirke Building at the centre of the former Royal Mint site to include embassy space. A public square would be created in front of it, behind the site\u2019s gated entrance.<\/p>\n

The scheme would also refurbish the Grade II-listed Seaman\u2019s Register, which was remodelled by RMJM in the 1980s. It would create a new Embassy House by splitting up and remodelling the conjoined, Sheppard Robson-designed Murray and Dexter House.<\/p>\n

The longer building, Dexter House, would contain flats for embassy staff, with the building\u2019s fa\u00e7ade reconfigured to provide a \u2018calmer and more unified\u2019 backdrop to the surrounding listed buildings. Meanwhile, Murray House would be repurposed into a new seven-storey Cultural Exchange building clad in green ceramic.<\/p>\n

A Tower Hamlets Council spokesperson told the AJ: ‘A new planning and listed building consent application has been submitted to develop an embassy on the site of Royal Mint Court. The planning team are reviewing the application and public consultation has commenced. At this stage we do not have a target committee date.’<\/p>\n

David Chipperfield Architects declined to comment.<\/p>\n

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government declined to comment.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The scheme, for a 2.3ha plot opposite Tower Bridge, was thought to have been abandoned by the Chinese government a year ago. It was resubmitted to Tower Hamlets Council last month. It consists of accommodation, offices and a cultural centre for the Chinese Embassy, and proposes reusing a range of existing buildings on the former …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":131789,"featured_media":751958,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_oasis_is_in_workflow":0,"_oasis_original":0,"ep_exclude_from_search":false},"categories":[681],"tags":[3905,2339,3907,5234],"yoast_head":"\nChipperfield\u2019s Chinese Embassy plans resubmitted<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"David Chipperfield Architects\u2019 controversial proposals for a new Chinese Embassy near the Tower of London have been resubmitted for planning without any major changes\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/news\/chipperfields-chinese-embassy-plans-resubmitted\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Chipperfield\u2019s Chinese Embassy plans resubmitted\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"David Chipperfield Architects\u2019 controversial proposals for a new Chinese Embassy near the Tower of London have been resubmitted for planning without any major changes\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/news\/chipperfields-chinese-embassy-plans-resubmitted\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"The Architects\u2019 Journal\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-08-13T08:27:58+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-08-14T07:42:53+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/cdn.rt.emap.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2024\/08\/12115417\/chippohero-1024x680.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"680\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Gino Spocchia\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Gino Spocchia\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Estimated reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/news\/chipperfields-chinese-embassy-plans-resubmitted\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/news\/chipperfields-chinese-embassy-plans-resubmitted\",\"name\":\"Chipperfield\u2019s Chinese Embassy plans resubmitted\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2024-08-13T08:27:58+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-08-14T07:42:53+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/779aa0e54c8c20bf4509b8cce80c65b0\"},\"description\":\"David Chipperfield Architects\u2019 controversial proposals for a new Chinese Embassy near the Tower of London have been resubmitted for planning without any major changes\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/news\/chipperfields-chinese-embassy-plans-resubmitted#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/news\/chipperfields-chinese-embassy-plans-resubmitted\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/news\/chipperfields-chinese-embassy-plans-resubmitted#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Chipperfield\u2019s Chinese Embassy plans resubmitted\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/\",\"name\":\"The Architects\u2019 Journal\",\"description\":\"Architecture News & Buildings\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/779aa0e54c8c20bf4509b8cce80c65b0\",\"name\":\"Gino Spocchia\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/ff22f86c19263bf2f9ca73b4d596096f\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9ace0cb1667a73da3fb8f9f2e77f8b97?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9ace0cb1667a73da3fb8f9f2e77f8b97?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Gino Spocchia\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/author\/gino-spocchia\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Chipperfield\u2019s Chinese Embassy plans resubmitted","description":"David Chipperfield Architects\u2019 controversial proposals for a new Chinese Embassy near the Tower of London have been resubmitted for planning without any major changes","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/news\/chipperfields-chinese-embassy-plans-resubmitted","og_locale":"en_GB","og_type":"article","og_title":"Chipperfield\u2019s Chinese Embassy plans resubmitted","og_description":"David Chipperfield Architects\u2019 controversial proposals for a new Chinese Embassy near the Tower of London have been resubmitted for planning without any major changes","og_url":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/news\/chipperfields-chinese-embassy-plans-resubmitted","og_site_name":"The Architects\u2019 Journal","article_published_time":"2024-08-13T08:27:58+00:00","article_modified_time":"2024-08-14T07:42:53+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1024,"height":680,"url":"https:\/\/cdn.rt.emap.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2024\/08\/12115417\/chippohero-1024x680.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Gino Spocchia","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Gino Spocchia","Estimated reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/news\/chipperfields-chinese-embassy-plans-resubmitted","url":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/news\/chipperfields-chinese-embassy-plans-resubmitted","name":"Chipperfield\u2019s Chinese Embassy plans resubmitted","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/#website"},"datePublished":"2024-08-13T08:27:58+00:00","dateModified":"2024-08-14T07:42:53+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/779aa0e54c8c20bf4509b8cce80c65b0"},"description":"David Chipperfield Architects\u2019 controversial proposals for a new Chinese Embassy near the Tower of London have been resubmitted for planning without any major changes","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/news\/chipperfields-chinese-embassy-plans-resubmitted#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/news\/chipperfields-chinese-embassy-plans-resubmitted"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/news\/chipperfields-chinese-embassy-plans-resubmitted#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Chipperfield\u2019s Chinese Embassy plans resubmitted"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/","name":"The Architects\u2019 Journal","description":"Architecture News & Buildings","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-GB"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/779aa0e54c8c20bf4509b8cce80c65b0","name":"Gino Spocchia","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/ff22f86c19263bf2f9ca73b4d596096f","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9ace0cb1667a73da3fb8f9f2e77f8b97?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9ace0cb1667a73da3fb8f9f2e77f8b97?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Gino Spocchia"},"url":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/author\/gino-spocchia"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/751851"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/131789"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=751851"}],"version-history":[{"count":17,"href":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/751851\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":752063,"href":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/751851\/revisions\/752063"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/751958"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=751851"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=751851"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=751851"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}