A cluster of residential flats to be built above the new Nine Elms tube station have been approved by Lambeth Council.

The plans are being developed by Connected Living London, a joint venture between Grainger and Transport for London for Build to Rent developments across London. Nine Elms is one of seven sites within CLL’s first phase of developments.

The approved design for 479 flats by Assael Architecture is a modified version of a Grimshaw design that was approved five years ago, swapping out a lot of modern design for more conventional brick cladding, and increasing the number of flats in the development.

Buildings A, B, C comprise mostly apartments with associated services and amenity space. A fourth building beside the station but not above it contains residential, commercial and retail uses with a green residential amenity area on the roof.

The main three buildings are being raised up on a podium, above the station box, with ground-floor retail, and upper levels given over to the ventilation extracts for the station below ground.

That effectively means what would normally be the ground floor flats are actually at least three storeys above the ground.

The site is car-free, other than some disabled bays, but will come with over 800 cycle bays in the basement, plus a further 117 cycle bays above ground for the tube station.

The affordable housing offer covers 40% of the housing and comprises 21 flats to be offered at the equivalent of Lambeth Tenancy Strategy 2020 rates and 155 flats at the equivalent of London Living Rent 21/22 levels.

It’s very much a design of modern times, tall towers as close together as possible without being intrusive, and lots of balconies to comply with regulations about access to a standard amount of outdoor space.

It now needs a final sign off from the GLA.

Work on the oversite development won’t start until after the Northern Line extension opens, which is due later this year.