The government's advisor on architecture, urban design and public space published their review of this scheme on the 3rd of March, less than a week later Tesco's have sent their architects back to the drawing board. The supermarket giant said it had taken the criticism on board and, following this and further community consultation, was revising the scheme. A spokesman said: "We want the scheme to deliver the best result for the area and are grateful for the feedback we have received."

The scheme proposes a new district centre including a replacement Tesco store of nearly 12,000sqm, other retail and community uses, a hotel, a primary school and 403 residential units as well as a new public riverside park. CABE's review of the scheme can be found here.

With this recent CABE review and subsequent quick response from Tesco's its good to see that the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment is doing exactly what it set out to achieve when it started back in 1999; improve design. You just wonder why if Tesco's give CABE's view in such high remark, why didn't they consult with them first? They may well do next time. 

Other locals are not so fond of it however. Here are the reasons: The Brick Lane mosque is grade 2 listed and in a conservation area, the new Minaret as seen in the picture is quite large and obtrusive. Also intriguingly the mosque today as it stands lies comparable to when it was first built as a French Protestant Church in 1743. After this it was turned into a Methodist Chapel in 1819 and then again to a Jewish Synagogue in 1898. Now obviously it serves its purpose as a Mosque.

This building then has often been remarked as representing the history of successive communities of immigrants into London; from this point of view it may be called one of the most remarkable and evocative buildings in the area and one of London's architectural and historic treasures. As new influxes of people have come in to the area and taken over the building for their own religious purpose, they have given the building very slight changes. Now the argument persists that "what happens when another religion moves in to and dominates the local landscape?" It would be a lot harder to knock down a minaret instead of applying a lick of paint which is what has happened in the past.

Continuing the theme, Tower Hamlets also look set to approve two structures which represent veil head scarves worn by Muslim women at the entrances to Brick Lane, at the north and to the south. This has again proved hugely unpopular and is being paid for by S106 money from the Spitalfields refurbishment and the Broadgate Tower. Local protesters including artist Tracey Emin called the design "bulky, ungainly and unnecessary" and risked inflaming racial tension. The 'hijab gates' as they will be called will cost nearly £2m and has received 158 objections, but planners recommended granting permission at committee (tonight 04/03/2010). Below is the Brick Lane entrance on Bethnal Green Road with the proposed structure.

Going back to the Mosque, can you think of a building that better shows the influx of different social and religious groups through time to a particular place like the Brick Lane Mosque does? I can't.

The Victorian Society is opposing the plans for the power station as it would mean the demolition of the "historically important and rare" water pumping station. Treasury Holdings do not feel that they can make use of the pumping station, and believe that if it is not removed then it will damage the potential for recouping the cost of restoring the larger and more famous power station. However, previous planning permission to demolish the Grade II listed building expired in 2007 and nothing has been submitted since, so Treasury Holdings may have a long battle on their hands.

..not bad but the Doon Street development is way out. Once you get bored of that (how could you possibly) start adding buildings from around the world:

The Eiffel Tower and the Burj Khalifa, the oldest and newest in the selection sit well on the skyline, bit difficult to get through customs though.

This all may sound lovely, but the project is going to cost £3 million and the whole idea behind it is just to hide the "shabby" looking Stratford shops from the 2012 Olympic visitors and future Westfield shoppers.

Below are a couple of pictures I've taken from the design and access statement showing the Skylines site against other consented schemes on the Isle of Dogs and Canary Wharf.

Further research led me to discover that this new proposal, designed by Hawkins Brown, will not neighbour any existing waterway, but will be creating its own by going back to its roots. Back in the 19th and early 20th Centuries the Grand Surrey Canal flowed from Surrey Quays all the way down to Camberwell, running straight through the middle of the site in question in Deptford. The canal was the first to have 'canal police' to keep order along the waterways, but after concerns about the number of children falling in it was eventually drained in the 1960s and 70s.

The new plans propose to reinstate the old canal through the new residential development, acting as a 'heart' for the development and a 'sustainable urban drainage system'. However the new waterway will only pass through the extent of the site owned by City & Provencial and not the surrounding areas, meaning it may become more of a pond rather than a flowing waterway. The site in question currently looks like this:

The new plans hope to rejuvenate the site and the developers visualise something along the lines of this for the future residents:

It looks like the canal police will be back though, this time disguised as giant rubber ducks. 

If like me you intend on being an armchair supporter, for the Olympics in two summers time, then the best place to be will of course be in your own living room.

But if you would like to actually saviour the build up and atmosphere to the whole event at first hand with the feeling of actually being there what better way to do this then by watching from your very own window just a stones throw away.

If so, then probably the best place to do this will be from Fish Island in E3, like the post below would suggest. However, Telford Homes may well have a claim to this statement as their Icona development on Warton Road (below, left) in E15 also has great views as well as a higher panoramic elevation, but is set slightly further back from the stadium, and will have views from a different angle.

However, Fish Island will sit just across the River Lee Navigation which is literally a stones throw. It consists of a small selection of developments, already built, running the length of the Olympic park. The newest of these to complete was Riverside Works at 419 Wick Lane (above right).

Earlier this week an e-mail popped into the LRR inbox advertising over 100 apartments for sale at this development. It was reportedly sold to a bulk investor back in 2008 but now appeares to be coming back to the market, probably just at the right time.

According to the company dealing with the sales, the flats were historically priced at £326,000 but they claim to be able to offer them for £250,000. The flats were built and ready for occupation from late 2008.

Here is another aerial shot of the Olympic site, this one showing both of the above mentioned schemes. 

What development do you think will have the best views of the Olympics? Any suggestions? I'm sure there will be a few more too that will come to the fore in the next decade.

What interested me though was the close proximity the 'Omega' and 'Crown Wharf' stuff on Roach Road, Fish Island is to the stadium (bottom right of the picture). These 3 developments all done by London Green Developments consist of:

• Omega 3 - 57 units, completed 2004
• Omega 4 - 98 units, completed 2007
• Crown Wharf 1 - 58 units, completed 2007

Below is a picture of what London Green Developments have already built out, looking over the River Lea and on to the Olympic Park. 

Above these however and highlighted in red (Olympic site picture) is a site I have been visiting for a while now with no sign of it kicking off any time soon and will add on to the far left of this picture above. It's Crown Wharf 2 and the 'Carlton Shoes' site, permitted in 2004 for 40 resi units as well as nearly 20,000 sq ft of office space. So why hasn't it kicked off yet? Well a quick look on companies house states London Green Developments has gone bust and is in recievership. Probably something to do with it.

There has also been talk recently too of property investor David Pearl creating an alternative media hub on White Post Lane (story) as well as land grabing around Hackney Wick station. Fish Island and the surrounding Hackney Wick area is sure to see huge regeneration changes in years to come and the Carlton Shoes site seems like a prime oven ready site for a long term investment.   

on his own land, but had no planning permission. He hid it behind straw bales for 4 years to try and get around the planning system and a legal loop hole whereby you can apply for a 'certificate of lawfulness'. This is whereby homeowners can gain immunity from eviction who have lived in a property for more than 4 years without any objections. Unfortunately for the apptly named farmer Mr Fiddler, Reigate and Banstead Council decided that the 4 year rule was void because nobody had been given a chance to see the castle. 

The vital part of illegality which the council stated and the High court agreed with was that the house was invalid because the building and removal of the bales constituted a part of the construction process. Mr Fiddler has now been given 12 months to demolish the structure, remove any rubble and return the site to its existing use (a field). 

The BBC also has the story, as well as a short interview with Mr Fiddler himself who says he will fight on...

What are your views? Do you believe the council are right to object to this development as it could well set a precedent? Or do you think they should keep their noses out of it? View them over at the Pint of Milk Test Forum.

The site in question (above) is a 0.4ha piece of land in the tiny village of Sipson on which Greenpeace plans to build a zero-carbon structure on the site to defend it from the bulldozers. The "Airplot" campaign is welcoming designs from both architecture experts and from the general public. Amongst the 'experts' who will ultimately judge the winner of the competition is impressionist Alastair McGowan.

Even without the fortress the campaigners have tried to make it as difficult as possible for bailiffs to seize the piece of land. Over 66,000 people now own part of it, which means they will each have to be served with eviction notices once the bulldozers are due to come in. If all that effort isn't enough to stop the new runway then there is always the fact that one of the trees on the land has already been "sponsored" by David Cameron.

Below is what London & Quadrant and Yoo Capital have in store for Walthamstow's Greyhound Stadium. Almost 500 new homes are planned, around half of which will be affordable.

However, "local" campaigners including David Beckham, Teddy Sheringham and Ray "The Daddy" Winstone oppose the demolition of the stadium, hoping that it would become "bigger and better" than before. Problem is that it's been closed for a while, and, as one of our researchers can testify, even on the penultimate meet before closure, the "crowds" were fairly thin on the ground. 

The Mayor of London along with Hackney and Tower Hamlets Councils have now approved new planning guidance (it's a neck breaker!) that will shape its future with outline visions of up to 2,000 new homes, community facilities and employment space. The local authorities and the GLA have worked closely with the landowners and future developers Ballymore and Hammerson as well as urban designers Terry Farrell and Partners to produce the planning guidance.

An exciting feature of the proposed development will be the creation of a high-level public park above the listed Braithwaite Viaduct. This will create a Shoreditch version of the famous New York High Line park, which completed last year and has been a huge success. Somehow though I doubt it will match up to New York's High Line, this is 1.45miles long and pictured (below).

The new Shoreditch high Street station on the East London Line extension is set to open this summer and will surely be a catalyst for regeneration. Although not exactly pleasent to look at the moment it has been designed so buildings can be built on top of and around it.  

The question remains then: how long will it be until the Bishopsgate Goodsyard is developed and Shoreditch High Street Station is surrounded by high rise developments? The picture below shows the vision. Quite a while I would say.