By Cameron Blackshaw, reporter for local democracy
More houses have added the leg in updated plans to replace an abandoned hospital in Bexley with a great residential development.
Several new planning documents have added leg to a planning request presented by Bexley Council to rebuild the old Bexley Maternity Hospital building in Erith Road and build several new buildings on the site.
The plans were revealed for the first time in January 2024 with the initial proposal with the aim of delivering 117 houses, composed of 28 apartments of a room, 74 two bedroom apartments, seven three bedroom apartments and eight houses with three bedrooms. 17 of these units would be affordable and 12 or they would be accessible to wheelchairs.
The number of proposed houses has now increased to 121, with 21 room apartments, 60 two bedroom apartments, 32 three bedroom apartments and eight three -room houses that constitute the total. 18 of these units would be affordable and 13 would be accessible to wheelchairs.
The apartments would be contained in the restored hospital building, as well as three new blocks of six -story towers to the south. The eight houses on two -story terraces would be located in a row west of the hospital according to the original plans.
Key design changes in updated plans include increasing the height of a block of five to six floors, re -placeing another block to retain a prominent cedar tree to the southwest of the site and eliminate vehicular access from the wooden rear -rear landing forest exploded north.
The Neo-Georgia-style hospital building with “Subtle Art Deco influence” dates back to 1937 and cost £ 31000 to build, according to the heritage documents. According to reports, the hospital has been closed since 1978, and has served more recently as offices of the Bexley Clinical Commissioning Group.
The facade of the hospital building would be preserved and restored as part of the development, with the abandoned medical center that gave way to a combination of 12 different floors.
GP surgery on the site is intended to remain under the plans, with updated planning documents that describe how it will be preserved to allow the potential extension of surgery in the future. The practice opened in 1986 and is east of the old maternity building.
In the future, Bexley’s council hopes to deliver the 180 full houses on the site that has outlined Bexley’s local plan. A building known as ‘North House’ to the southeast of the site is currently in use as an emerging temporary accommodation for homeless people.
The land where North House is currently under a different property. Bexley planners hope to buy this land in the future, demolish the current structure and build a three -story block and a five -story block containing the 49 houses.
In the photo of the photo: Bexley Maternity Hospital, which was built in the 1930s (image: Google Street View)
