The Council has proposed dividing the borough into two different charging zones for residential and retail developments as well as hotels, offices and student accommodation. It has set out a draft Zone A which covers the southern part of the borough and a Zone B which covers the remaining borough.
For residential developments, the Council has set a draft rate of £300 per sq m to apply within Zone A and a rate of £250 per sq m to apply within Zone B. Retail uses would be charged at a rate of £175 per sq m in Zone A and a rate of £125 per sq m in Zone B under the plans.
Hotel developments have been proposed to be subject to a rate of £350 per sq m in Zone A and a rate of £250 in Zone B. For office developments, a rate of £80 per sq m would apply in Zone A, with a nil rate levy set to apply in Zone B.
The Council has proposed setting a borough-wide rate of £400 to apply to student accommodation schemes and a rate of £80 per sq m to apply to assembly and leisure developments, conference centres and most sui generis developments.
A draft nil rate levy will apply to most industrial developments; public leisure, health, care and waste facilities; emergency service facilities; water and waste-water facilities and non-residential institutions.
A number of the rates proposed in the DCS have been amended from the rates set out in the Council's preliminary draft charging schedule (PDCS) which it consulted on last year.
The DCS includes reductions in rates for office, retail, hotel and student accommodation uses as well as an introduction of variable rates by area for residential, retail and hotel uses. The Council said that this was based on evidence that the development market for these uses is stronger in the south of the borough, which forms part of London’s Central Activities Zone.
It also said that, further to the PDCS consultation, it has proposed to set nil charging rates for uses which are considered to be public infrastructure to reflect "severe constraints" in public sector funding and the potential impact that a CIL charge would have on the viability of these uses.
The Council said that the amended rates will lower the level of funding available for infrastructure, but will help to ensure that CIL will not have a detrimental impact on delivery of its Development Plan in accordance with regulations.
In addition to CIL charged by the Council, any developments in the borough will also be subject to Mayoral CIL. The Mayoral CIL charge in Islington is £50 per sq m on all uses except for health and education purposes, which are exempt.
The Council said it aims to adopt CIL in the spring of 2014.
