Old Oak Common Development Committee (OPDC) councillors unanimously approved plans for Egyptian developer ALDau to redevelop a 0.39ha site at 4 Portal Way, building what would be Londons tallest residential building.The site is currently home to a nine-storey Holiday Inn hotel, which will be replaced by 90 rooms in Apts mixed-used, residential-led, scheme.Apts skyscrapers are the same height as a never-progressed, twin-tower scheme by KPF for the same plot, which received consent in 2021. ALDAU was also behind those plans.AdvertisementIt appointed Apt to redesign the skyscraper scheme to accommodate updated fire safety regulations and to respond to market changes.KPFs scheme would have been the tallest residential scheme in London, reaching 237m. Although marginally shorter at 236m, Apts proposal would also take the crown as the capitals tallest residential building.That title is understood to be currently held by Squire & Partners 233m-tall Landmark Pinnacle building in the Isle of Dogs, east London (completed in 2022).KPFs scheme included a 159-bedroom hotel and office conference space, with 702 residential units.The Greater London Authority warned that KPFs plans raised a range of visual, functional and environmental issues. However, planners at the west London borough of Ealing recommended approval, arguing it was a well-designed scheme which benefited from a creative but also carefully measured design approach.AdvertisementApts newly consented plans include 669 flats with a 6,780m2 hotel, 733m2 of commercial space, and a connecting base podium plus landscaping.Build-to-rent residential accomodation makes up 65 per cent of the tenures offered, with 35 per cent of homes (203 units) earmarked as affordable.OPDC planning officers recommended the updated plans for approval. They said Apts scheme represented a high-quality architectural approach [and] the differentiation between the two buildings in terms of materiality, expression and height is considered to make them successful as a pair.Apt director and project leader Bram van der Wal said he was thrilled by the approval adding that the proposal would not only complement North Actons emerging Southern Gateway cluster but also create a new destination for the local community.