The Canary Wharf Group has put forward plans to develop the area’s nearby Wood Wharf site into a business and residential development in time for the introduction of the Crossrail network.

The group has submitted plans to Tower Hamlets Council in a bid to create a district housing 3,100 residential units, 240,000sq m of office space and 100 shops, restaurants and cafes.

It is thought that the group also wants to develop the area into a location offering leading creative media, technology and telecommunications companies, in stark comparison with the financial-based services typified across its Canary Wharf site.

Instead of using the same skyscraper method deployed at Canary Wharf, the Wood Wharf site is to feature mainly mid to low-rise buildings, with residential offerings ranging from affordable housing to luxury penthouses.

Despite a focus on smaller structures, the area is to be dominated by a striking 57-storey residential tower by Herzog & de Meuron, which is to be built alongside another two buildings, as part of the first phase of the development.

"This is an exciting new project for Canary Wharf Group which represents the continued redevelopment of East London almost 30 years after the original transformation of Canary Wharf began,” said Sir George Iacobescu, chairman and chief executive of Canary Wharf Group.

"The revised masterplan will create a strong and complementary mix of uses, and provide new homes, offices and retail spaces set within a network of streets and public spaces, designed to support the social life of new residents, employees and the surrounding community.”

If plans are approved, the group hopes to start construction sometime next year, with a view to completing the first set of buildings in 2017.

The Canary Wharf and Wood Wharf area is to be serviced by a high-speed Crossrail station, which is set to be completed sometime in 2018.

More information on the proposed project is available here.