Plans submitted for 314 homes on former Watford Police Station

Residential developer McLaren Living has applied to build three new buildings between four and 23 storeys tall on the 1.75-acre brownfield site in Clarendon Road.

It said the proposals, which are not yet viewable publicly, would “regenerate this underutilised town centre site, to create a vibrant, mixed-use community”.

A CGI of how the Garden Square would look. (Image: McLaren Living)

The redevelopment would also include a new public “Garden Square”, 31,441 square feet of office space in a separate building, 4,485 sq ft of retail space with a new café and approximately 6,000 sq ft of children’s play space. 

McLaren Living development director Patrick Joyce said: “Our vision is to bring forward a new mixed-use quarter in the commercial heart of Watford, helping breathe new life into this part of Clarendon Road by delivering much needed new homes, high quality workspace, retail space and a new publicly accessible Garden Square. 

“We’ve liaised closely with the local community, stakeholders and the council on our plans for Clarendon Road and look forward to continuing our work to deliver a new neighbourhood for Watford.”

The developer purchased the site last year after Herts Police moved to their new George Street headquarters.

It was previously thought the new development would be 22 storeys-tall, although McLaren has now said it would reach 23 floors.

If approved, the plans would place the proposed “mixed-use” estate among the tallest buildings in Watford.

Police's former base in Shady Lane.

It will be almost as tall as The Clarendon tower just down the street, which reached its highest level in January at 25 storeys.

• Watford could be set for new 22-storey tower, plans reveal
• Planning app for housing at former police station delayed

Further north, the Eight Gardens scheme in St Albans Road is also set to reach 28 floors once completed by 2028, with at least four other blocks of 20 or more storeys, and is set to provide 1,265 homes in total.

Watford Police moved out the Shady Lane site in December after 83 years, as it was said to no longer be "fit for purpose" and required "costly maintenance".

Since then, police said the move had increased response times as officers arrived to 4.3 per cent more incidents within 15 minutes bringing the total to 94.6 per cent.