Car Park Parties

UPDATE: See comments at bottom for a positive response from Tobacco Dock.
Yesterday a new corporate summer party destination was announced: 'Top of the Dock'. The news was reported by Event Industry News which wrote:

 Tobacco Dock, in partnership with Best Parties Ever and Tapenade catering, are delighted to announce two unique themed roof terraces for June/July 2014. Located over 120’ above Tobacco Dock, they provide stunning views of the London skyline including Tower Bridge, The Shard, The Gherkin and Canary Wharf. 
The Level 16 Sunset Terrace is inspired by legendary Ibiza bars such as Café Del Mar and the Blue Marlin. It will be white, slick and chilled. The second terrace is themed as an English Secret Garden Party and will be a quintessential country garden recreated in the city. Both provide the perfect location for corporate summer parties, product launches or any event that would benefit from indoor/outdoor space with stunning views across London. Each terrace has a capacity of 450 guests or can be combined for even larger events.


First up, I know I'm not down with the kids: the only cultural reference I know of Blue Marlin is the fish in Hemingway's 'The Old Man and the Sea'.

Sounds pretty sweet no? Sunsets, chilled Ibiza vibes next to an English country garden (which just evokes The Importance of Being Earnest for me).

Some curiosity, and suggested by Matthew who spotted this on twitter, led to the thought that these roof terraces might actually be the Tobacco Dock car park. A number of Temporary Event Notices (TENs) on the Tower Hamlets Licensing register were listed as 'Tobacco Dock Car Park Porters Walk'.

Porters Walk is the official address of Tobacco Dock, which suggested the car park on Pennington Street. However, the description of being on 'level 16' and '120 feet' above Tobacco Dock didn't ring true. Some research on a filming location site indicated that the top level of that car park was number 10.

From my climb up to the multi-storey car park on Wapping Lane, I thought I recalled the top level being 16 (and it's a much taller building). So I emailed LBTH Licensing and asked them which car park it was and they confirm it is the Wapping Lane one.

All of which is a very long winded way of saying there are going to be parties on top of a car park. Having been in the stairwells and lobbies of that car park I assume two further things 1) increased security in the car park both on event nights and between to protect the equipment; and 2) at least some of the lifts and stairs are likely to see some sprucing up (the one I walked up was covered in bird shit).

I'm extremely unlikely to see what the actual set up looks like, but the view is pretty good up there and I hope they are a success. My one concern is that the organisers ensure that the events are well managed and don't disturb residents - being on the exposed top of one of the tallest buildings in Wapping could affect a number of residents, particularly those moving into 21 Wapping Lane.

Mark of LoveWapping has contacted Tobacco Dock for more details and I have asked the council for the dates that the TENs cover. Local residents have been affected by noise from this car park previously (as a result of events in Tobacco Dock itself) and I hope the organisers engage with residents proactively. We will provide updates as they are received.


You can read more here. The organisers are Best Parties Ever but there is currently no detail on their website.

Shout out to @MAHARRIS98 on twitter for tweeting about this event

Comments

  1. Dear All
    Many thanks for your coverage of the announcement of the pop-ups and your interest. The proposed roof terraces are indeed the top 2 levels of the Wapping Lane car park. Avoiding any potential disturbance to the local residents is a primary concern and all conditions of Tobacco Dock's Premises License will be enforced for the TENs submitted by the event organiser, BPE. The event organiser also hopes to engage with the local community and open the pop-up for events such as screening Wimbledon matches.

    As you rightly suggest there will be some sprucing up to the stairwells and general smartening up.

    We hope that we have your support and can welcome the local community to enjoy the stunning views in late June/early July.

    Kind regards

    Jonathan Read
    Commercial Director - Tobacco Dock Venue Limited

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Jonathan, thanks for replying - it's an encouraging sign that you have engaged in the discussion proactively.

      For the benefit of residents would it be possible to explain who they should speak to on any concerns? Opening up for Wimbledon would be a great gesture to the community.

      Thank you

      Delete
  2. Hi Paul

    I'll provide the contact details for the BPE Project manager shortly - as you know this highly experienced company will be operating the roof terraces. I am also always very happy to address concerns any local residences may have.

    ReplyDelete
  3. sounds like a Kensington Roof Gardens style setup. Assuming that effect on neighbours is well-managed, I'd be very interested in attending :D

    ReplyDelete

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