Plans submitted to turn Home Office towers into homes

Singaporean investor Ho Bee Land has submitted initial plans to transform two of Croydon’s 1970s brutalist buildings into flats. Ho Bee Land, which bought government office blocks Apollo House and Lunar House, both on Wellesley Road, for £99m in 2015, is seeking to build more than 600 flats across the two buildings. It has submitted environmental impact assessments for both towers, which it does not plan to demolish. At the 20-storey Lunar House it wants to undertake a full refurbishment of the existing tower and convert it into 420 flats. At Apollo House, it is seeking permission to create a 208-home scheme through a major refurbishment of the 22-storey tower. Ho Bee Land is expected to put forward a full planning application next year. Lunar House and Apollo House were developed by Harry Hyams in the 1970s. They comprise a total of 441,797 sq ft of office space. The Home Office is moving out of Lunar House and Apollo House in December this year. It is relocating to the nearby Rushkin Square development. DP9 is advising on planning.