BIG expected to make UK debut at Battersea Power Station
News: Bjarke Ingels' firm has been named as the designer of a new public square in the redevelopment of Battersea Power Station in south London.
According to the Architect's Journal, Copenhagen and New York-based BIG will makes its UK debut with the so-called Malaysia Square – a key public space within the £8 billion redevelopment of the decommissioned power station site.
Although no formal announcement has been made, the report claims the firm has been selected from an international shortlist to develop a public realm design that will join the three phases of the development laid out in Rafael Viñoly’s masterplan.
It will link the pedestrianised high street at the centre of Frank Gehry and Foster + Partner's proposal with the revamped power station by Wilkinson Eyre, as well as to the new housing areas underway by British firms Ian Simpson Architects and dRMM.
Understood to be one of the most important schemes in the 17-hectare masterplan, the new plaza is expected to become a "front-door" to the development.
Approval has also now been granted for a £1 billion extension of the London Underground's Northern Line, which will create a new connection between Battersea and the city centre. The plans include two new tube stations designed by London firm Grimshaw.