A 170m tower scheme for the site was first approved five years ago when it was known as the Beetham Tower project and was intended as a luxury hotel.
Berkeley’s luxury housing arm St George bought the 1 Blackfriars site from Beetham and its Russian partner Mirax when the pair ran into financial trouble.
St George has kept architect Ian Simpson’s original design, reworking the interior for 274 private apartments. A marketing suite has already been built on the site to promote sales of the luxury apartments.
Also the developer has pledged to make a £29m payment to build council housing elsewhere in the borough to meet social housing commitments.
The new proposal approved by Southwark Borough Council involves a total of three buildings. Beside the tower will be a six-storey hotel alongside a podium building.
The planning application will now go before the London Mayor, who has yet to turn down a major London project.
Work on the site is expected to start towards the end of next year.
Brookfield Multiplex is expected to be in the frame to manage the job after taking St George’s Vauxhall Tower scheme further down the Thames last year. This St George job is due to finish as 1 Blackfriars starts up.