Right planning call on Broadgate, but more worries ahead

News that the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport, Jeremy Hunt, rejected English Heritage's recommendation that the Broadgate Estate be granted grade II* listed status, came as a huge relief to all those with the City of London's future prospects at heart.

The City of London Corporation was opposed to this listing from the start, and did not believe the buildings within the Broadgate complex were of sufficient architectural merit to warrant listing.

There were also concerns as to the impact any such listing would have on the City's international competitiveness and especially its impact on UBS being able to build a new European HQ at 5 Broadgate.

The Square Mile is, and always has been, first and foremost a place of business and even though it goes to great lengths actively to protect the City's heritage, the City of London Corporation must also be responsive to the business needs of current and potential future occupiers.

When it was started less than 30 years ago, Broadgate provided an innovative and flexible solution to providing the accommodation the Square Mile required post-Big Bang; to have prevented any future changes would have contradicted the underlying rationale behind the original development.

By approving the scheme at 5 Broadgate, the City of London provided a fitting home for one of Europe's leading banks and demonstrated its commitment to developing a business environment that can continue to attract the world's leading firms for years to come.

But just as one major obstacle has been overcome, a number of other planning issues continue to loom large on the horizon.

The Communities and Local Government Department's consultation on whether to relax planning rules for the change of use of commercial offices to residential properties could have a significant impact not just on the City but on business districts throughout the UK.

While the Government's desire to support economic growth and to increase housing stocks is laudable, these proposals are completely inappropriate for the Square Mile.

The quality and quantity of office space available in the City is carefully planned many years in advance, taking into account not only prevailing market conditions but also the long-term business needs of current and future occupiers.