London's first "floating village" proposed by buoyant Boris but would it spell doom?

First it was Boris Island airport and now London Mayor Boris Johnson wants to go even further by building a “floating village” in the Thames.

Speaking at the MIPIM property conference yesterday in Cannes, France, Johnson said he would like to see 15 acres of land reclaimed near the Royal Victoria Dock site in East London and turned into a fully-fledged community.

Under his proposals, Johnson would see the site – twice the size of Soho – kitted with homes, restaurants, hotels and impressive transport links, including Crossrail. It would be “London’s answer to Venice,” Johnson said in his keynote speech.

The MIPIM conference is one of the world’s leading property events, where London property developers always make an extremely strong showing.

“This site is unique,” Johnson said. “It has the potential to become one of the most sought after addresses in the capital while breathing new life back into London’s waterways. But it’s not alone.

“Right across London there are incredible investment opportunities that I’m determined to bring to market creating more homes and jobs for Londoners,” he added.

If all goes according to plan, Johnson hopes work will get underway before the end of his current mayoral term in May 2014.

However, doubts about the plan were quickly raised, with safety campaigners saying that the zone would fall inside the London City Airport Public Safety Zone, also called a crash zone.

“This ‘floating village’ would be a village of the damned,” said London City Airport Campaigner Alan Haughton. “Nobody wants to live with the risk of an aircraft coming down on their family, never mind all the other associated risks like noise.

“London City Airport will soon be coming up for sale. If Boris Johnson really thinks that the Royal Docks has the potential to become one of the most sought-after addresses in London he needs to use his powers to buy or shut the airport down and unlock the true value of the area.”

Previous objections filed against the Boris Johnson backed Emirates Air cable car, which also rests in the dangeer zone have been ignored.

London City Airport is expecting to soon submit proposals to increase the size of its stands, which would allow bigger aircrafts to fly.

This would impact on the noise and the air quality of the surrounding area, Haughton explained.