The Museum of Migration, which explores how people moving to the UK capital from around the world has influenced their lives, is getting a permanent home in the City of London, along with
over 700 new student rooms. Currently located in Lewisham, the project has been criticised by locals, particularly over the number of new student flats. The museum will occupy two floors of exhibition space and another floor for events in a new 21-storey tower block at 65 Crutched Friars, which will also contain 769 rooms, 35% of which will be designated affordable housing. A real estate company, Dominus, will provide the space rent-free for 60 years, while also paying for the operating costs of the museum for three years. The bottom three floors of the building will contain a cafe and shop. The development was approved by the City of London’s planning committee.
The museum has said it will “explore how the movement of people to and from the City, London, and the UK has shaped who we all are today – as individuals, as communities, and as nations”. Museum CEO Sophie Henderson said the museum was “creating Britain's missing museum”, adding: “We are delighted to have secured this opportunity for a permanent home."
The new tower will replace a five-storey 1980s office block, and will contain studio apartments and shared accommodations. Following the City of London's planning committee meeting, chairman Shravan Joshi said: "This development will bring new life to the eastern part of the City and an economic boost to the Square Mile."
However, not all have welcomed the development. One local resident has argued that the new block will mean there will be four times as many students as residents in the Tower Hill area. The complaint follows concerns expressed by locals earlier this month that a new development in Elephant and Castle will price out the local community.
The museum's announcement comes amid calls for a "Museum of Slavery and Migration" in London to recognise and address the UK's involvement in the transatlantic slave trade. Campaigners have called for the museum to be built in the docklands area of the city, where many enslaved Africans were brought to the UK, and have been lobbying the Greater London Authority to back the project. Photo by Pub. by Smith's Inc., Plymouth, Mass. Tichnor Bros. Inc., Boston, Mass, Wikimedia commons.