Elephant planning struggles rumble on: Part 2

Two more stories to recount in the ever on going and bitter story of Eileen House, between developer Oakmayne and would-be developer Ministry of Sound as well as now architects Allies & Morrison and would-be architects Marks Barfield. Read the prelude 'Elephant planning struggles' part 1 here.

Firstly Marks Barfield Architects plans for Eileen House, commissioned by Ministry of Sound (view here) have been blasted by Allies & Morrison, the firm whose plans for the site got vetoed by Southwark councillors last week. According to Building Design, Allies & Morrison said Marks Barfield's work amounted to "predatory" behaviour to undermine the planning application and said he was shocked by the timing which he felt amounted to "propaganda" intended to undermine their scheme at the key moment. Also interestingly he revealed the two practices were working together on a mixed-use scheme in Vauxhall. "It's not as if I didn't see them and they never mentioned it," Morrison, co-founder of Allies & Morrison said. "They owe us an explanation. I can't imagine working in that way against someone I thought was a colleague and a friend. I think it's an action they will regret for the rest of their lives." Awkward...

As well as this another development appeared in yesterday's Sunday Times. The story here is of Ministry of Sound's sobering finances. Apparently turnover fell to £43m last year from £50m and their pre-tax loss widened to £2.4m. However despite the fall in profits, they still found £34,336 for political donations; £31,000 for Labour and £3,336 for the Liberal Democrats, coincidentally the two parties controlling Southwark Council. Interesting...

Update: Southwark Council is actually controlled wholly by Labour, they replaced the Lib-Dem coalition last year.