An amazingly speedy response to my previous blog from Jaine Lunn
I am hoping you will publish the blog in
response to final paragraph contained in your most recent post regarding how
the council should operate when they own the property.
Recently Wembley Youth Centre was closed,
citing that Brent Council had held a consultation on Youth Services and could
no longer fund this particular centre.
As a Council owned building, Wembley Crime Prevention who were running
most of the projects, quickly realised that the youth of Wembley would have nowhere
to go and submitted an Expression of Interest for a Community Asset
Transfer. Whilst this was accepted and
acknowledged that it met with the Borough Plan objectives, it was refused on
the grounds that this land had been earmarked for a housing development (!) butthey
may consider leasing it in the short
term, until the property was put up for sale/lease and planning applications
and consultations were submitted.
Contrast this will the Tokyngton Library which
Labour closed in 2011. Brent Council
Officers prepared a detailed Housing Plan of up to 20 units inclusive of a
Shared Community Facility for the local community.
In round one of consultations one of the
highest bidders was a developer who accepted the Councils plans in full. However, this was not to be, amazingly a
second round of bidding was allowed and the former Library was sold to a party
associated with Councillor Butt and his family LINK, with no housing or community
centre for the local residents/public.
In King Eddies Park, only a year ago when
the Bowls Club Pavilion was was rescued
from development, an Expression of Interest for Community Transfer for the
Pavilion rejected, and the interested
parties were told, this is not an option and will not be listed as an asset of community
value as “the council need to make money”.
This Bowling Pavillion and associated land
is now up for lease at £25,000 per annum along with parking allowance and
unlimited access to the Park!
And finally, what happened to the last remaining public
use Green Open Space in Wembley Central, now part of the new development of Ark
Elvin Academy. This was public land that
in 1998 was transferred to the Governing Body of Copland Community High School,
a grant maintained school of which the infamous Sir Alan Davies KBE was
head. No public consultation, no
exchange of money for land that is worth millions and certainly in double
figures. Which now belongs to Ark Elvin
Academy whom I assume also haven’t paid any money for it. LINK
At the same time despite Brent Council
receiving objections to the removal of the Public Right of Way, Footpath 87, people
in the the wards of Wembley Central and Tokynton are prevented from entering or
crossing the land, which they have had use of for over 50 years. The objection has been sent to the Secretary
of State for the Environment and is yet to be decided. Keir the Constructor of the new school has
chosen to ignore the rules and traffic order and quite happily sealed off the
Public Right of Way, and installed a temporary footpath which is higgledy
piggeldy over the field, a muggers’ paradise if ever I saw one and very
unsafe. On calling the Council regarding
this I got the response “Oh well I’m afraid there is nothing I can do, but it
won’t look good for them with the Secretary of State”!
So yes Martin, we do need a peoples’ panel
to stop them running rough shod over us with regard to the planning committee
decisions. It is obvious they read
little or even try to understand what is being conveyed in the committee
reports, evident when listening to the
questions they ask and observing who votes for what.
