Monday 19 June 2017

'Delay South Kilburn Masterplan until community has reviewed it,' request Granville and Carlton users




Leslie Barson and Deirdre Woods, representing the users of South Kilburn's Granville and Carlton Centres are unable to attend tonight's Cabinet meeting which will consider the Masterplan Supplementary Planning Document. They have submitted the following comments for consideration by the Cabinet and a request that the Cabinet delay acceptance of the plan to enable the community to review what should be their plan.

The South Kilburn Masterplan Supplementary Planning Document (SPD) is over 180 pages long over 3 sections. The people from South Kilburn were given 6 weeks to comment on this document which lays out the plans for their homes, parks, health, education, small businesses, and community services in the area for the next 10 -15 years. Each site is given 2 A4 pages in the document. The first half of the page gives the details about where the property is with the second half of the same page incorporating a short paragraph about each of these three issues: ‘Description’, ‘Justification’ and ‘Design Principles’. The second page gives a vague shadow drawing of a huge block or blocks in the place of the current buildings. 

1.   Firstly this is not an adequate amount of time or information for the community to read, understand , digest  and examine the implications of such a massive plan. This can be seen by the small number of community responses to the SPD. Surely changes of this magnitude cannot be accepted on the basis of numbers of responses  in double figures when there are over 8000 people living in the area?


2.   Secondly, all the buildings in the chapter called ‘Site Specific Principles’  are to be replaced with new buildings.  Much of the plans arguments for this demolition are simplistic and debatable such as there is a lack of clarity about what is the front or the back of the property” (Crane and Zangwill) or the property “is currently in a prominent gateway position and the current development does not capitalise on this” (William Dunbar and William Saville Houses). This needs to be properly examined, each building on its own merit, before lives are disrupted for years and changed forever.

3.   Thirdly, you are deciding on Monday 19 June 2017 that this SPD replaces the one was developed over some years WITH the South Kilburn Community and then voted on. How can a plan created by the Council and its consultants replace a plan voted on by residents? The 2005 SPD may need updating with changes to law occurring since the first was voted on but the scale and magnitude of the changes make this SPD beyond all recognition of the SK residents plan
                                                                                                             
Therefore I ask the Cabinet to please delay the acceptance of this plan and help support the community  to review THEIR 2005 Masterplan in a long term in-depth manner as befits a document of this size and importance and with such huge ramification for the residents of South Kilburn.

Leslie Barson and Deirdre Woods representing the Users of Granville and Carlton

4 comments:

Pete Firmin said...

They didn't delay, despite this and other requests, and a resident of Kilburn speaking to this letter as the authors couldn't make it. Instead, Mo Butt spoke for several minutes on how wonderful the regeneration of SK is.They are all oblivious to appeals to listen to those living in the middle of their regeneration. Echoes of Grenfell?:

Philip Grant said...

Dear Pete,

Did Shama Tatler, the Lead Member for Regeneration, contribute to the discussion at the Cabinet meeting yesterday evening? Or did the Leader just push this scheme through, as he has done with other schemes, and with other Cabinet members who have theoretically been the Lead member for Regeneration?

Philip.

Pete Firmin said...

I wasn't there, Philip, but I'm told that after David Kaye spoke for his allotted 3 minutes, basically presenting the argument above from Granville staff, the response was from Mo Butt saying how wonderful SK regeneration is, how its won awards, and everybody is happy. Business as usual. As David was leaving, Shama Tatler came over with warm words......
I also wrote asking Cabinet to defer decisions and have now received a response from Shama Tatler (after the event), which I'm afraid to say is full of untruths and evasions. Very frustrating.

Philip Grant said...

Dear Pete,

Thank you for giving us the picture!

Philip.