Building Design reports on the latest chapter in arguably south London planning's longest-running fiasco. Remember how excited we got when we learnt of the ambitious, joined-up plans, developed over 13 years, that Parkview had put together for the Battersea Power Station site? Well, new owners, Treasury, clearly weren't as excited, since they've secretly decided to start afresh, refusing to meet West 8, Ron Arad & Associates or Benson & Forsyth, even though their involvement in the Parkview master plan was well advanced (to the point of planning approval). In the meantime, they've been meeting new architects, but only ones who've agreed to sign a confidentiality agreement:

A source at one leading firm which decided against taking part in the contest said it was asked to sign a confidentiality agreement even before learning it was for Battersea.

Friendly. Battersea Power Station's too important a London landmark for this kind of foolishness. Are Wandsworth Council and English Heritage really as powerless as they seem in the face of private sector muscle?

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