Friday 21 January 2022

Planning Inspector 'unable to recommend Kilburn Square's allocation as a tall building zone'

 

Kilburn High Road is top right

 

 The campaign against tall buildings in Kilburn Square by local activists LINK seems to have borne fruit.

The Planning Inspector's Report on the Brent Local Plan states:

The Council also put forward a new tall building zone to be allocated at Kilburn Square which would include the existing tower and land adjacent around Kilburn Square. We have noted the Council’s evidence in relation to this new zone, primarily focusing on the height of the existing tower on the estate well as the sites PTAL rating at 6a. We have also considered the detailed representations made during the main modification’s consultation in relation to this new tall buildings zone, particularly regarding the proposed size of the zone and its location adjacent to the Brondesbury Road Conservation Area. We are mindful of the fact that in light of the London Plan policy, the Council are no longer afforded the degree of flexibility previously envisaged in terms of the application of Policy BD2. Nevertheless, the creation of a new tall buildings zone at Kilburn Square would be contrary to the evidence base presented to this local plan examination, namely the Tall Buildings Strategy. It is not a location identified or considered as part of this evidence and accordingly we are unable to recommend its allocation as a tall buildings zone.

 

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

Has the fight back has begun. If only we could get rid of this loathesome Labour Council, especially the cabinet and its supporters on the council.

Anonymous said...

It seems a reasonable Brent policy for such a well-connected, inner city area.

Anonymous said...

So Brent are seen to he favouring their developer mates yet again? Corrupt?

Anonymous said...

So Brent are seeming to be favouring their developer mates yet again? Corrupt?

Anonymous said...

Windmill Court is in the same Cooperation Agreement with Kilburn Square and our planning application was submitted at Christmas for comments by 28 January reference number 21/4690.

Do you know anyone who can help stick up for our trees 🌳 even just put it out on social media or on the Wembley Matters blog:

They are removing 13 individual mature trees and an additional group of trees 🌳 
These are mature London Plane trees and help counteract pollution from the A5 it’s basically an Urban Woodland that’s being removed and will affect the existing residents and the proposed blocks being built across the building line too close to the A5.

It’s shocking that they could get away with it when it surely goes against environmental and climate change policies.
They are removing our benches on the front lawn and diverting our path from Mapesbury Road to overshoot our entrance to give new residents private outdoor space and create a new seating space for us over beside the A5!
Planning doesn’t take into account the existing residents which is a tragedy. 

Even access to the existing building in the event of a fire will be impacted and impossible to get any high reach engines near to the 17 storey block. A real worry as we had a fatal fire here in January 2019 and these proposals would make for an even worse outcome. Yet they are only concerned with the proposed new build properties.

I do worry about the fact that they are effectively marking their own homework.

Anonymous said...

Windmill Court is in the same Cooperation Agreement with Kilburn Square and our planning application was submitted at Christmas for comments by 28 January reference number 21/4690.

Do you know anyone who can help stick up for our trees 🌳 even just put it out on social media or on the Wembley Matters blog:

They are removing 13 individual mature trees and an additional group of trees 🌳 
These are mature London Plane trees and help counteract pollution from the A5 it’s basically an Urban Woodland that’s being removed and will affect the existing residents and the proposed blocks being built across the building line too close to the A5.

It’s shocking that they could get away with it when it surely goes against environmental and climate change policies.
They are removing our benches on the front lawn and diverting our path from Mapesbury Road to overshoot our entrance to give new residents private outdoor space and create a new seating space for us over beside the A5!
Planning doesn’t take into account the existing residents which is a tragedy. 

Even access to the existing building in the event of a fire will be impacted and impossible to get any high reach engines near to the 17 storey block. A real worry as we had a fatal fire here in January 2019 and these proposals would make for an even worse outcome. Yet they are only concerned with the proposed new build properties.

I do worry about the fact that they are effectively marking their own homework.

Philip Grant said...

One of the main arguments Brent Council puts forward for trying to cram so many "New Council Homes" onto "infill" sites like Kilburn Square and its adjacent estate is that it has so many people in need of Council homes, and because of high land prices in London it has to build those homes on land it already owns.

What Brent's Cabinet has agreed to do at Cecil Avenue (on the former Copland School site, part of its Wembley Housing Zone) blows that argument out of the water!

It has planning permission to build 250 homes on Council owned land there, but proposes to allow a "developer partner" to have 152 of those homes, to sell at a profit! For the details, please see my guest blog (published just before this blog article): "Brent Council, the developer's friend - the proof in black and white."

And good luck to the Kilburn campaigners!

Martin Francis said...

Hi Windmill Court resident. I would be happy to publish an account of the situation you have and put it out on social media. If you email with pictures etc I will see what i can do. Martin

wembleymatters@virginmedia.com

David Walton said...

Perhaps these two housing co-operatives with Brent as their freeholder, need also to explore and project 'other ideas'…….

At Kilburn Square the market could be re-designed to work also as Kilburn Towns main central public square? While the KS largest surviving green space could be funded into becoming a high quality public open space in order to best protect it?

Windmill Caught? Again Brent Kilburn's chronic lack of public open space (south to north) should be Brent policy factored in. So many people live in flats yet it is only in family homes de-growth suburbia where Brent public open space is heavily protected and invested in. It seems nothing has been public health learned from pandemic lockdowns flat dwellers trauma by Brent strategic planners as yet.

National Labour really needs 2022 to highlight the many thousands of empty flats (including new build) in Central London. What a criminal waste of existing housing resources and build energy. Heavily taxing these buy-to-leave global investments is an urgent priority issue facing London. If this criminal housing waste was politically addressed then the giant plain trees at Windmill Caught could easily survive as London's housing crisis does not need this in parallel empty home global banking systems growth.