Lessons for Brent? Yes to Fair Redevelopment welcomes Southwark Council’s U-Turn on rooftop development

 

 

With the current controversy over Brent Council's infill proposals for our council estates I thought residents and readers would be interested in this Southwark campaign by Yes to Fair Development.  Building extra storeys on existing blocks has featured as a possibility in this borough as well.

 

Yes to Fair Development Press Release 

 

The group has pledged to continue the fight to stop unfair infill proposals which threaten to make residents’ lives a misery for years to come, removing tenant halls, play space and green space from estates, replacing it with housing. 

 

 

After the worst heatwave on record, with temperatures above 40 Degrees, residents point out the vital role played by green space and trees in keeping their homes cool. A BBC heat map shows that the hottest areas in Southwark are Peckham, North Southwark and Bermondsey, whereas leafy Dulwich stays cooler than average.

 

 

Yes to Fair Redevelopment says the Council should take over empty homes and repair existing council homes rather than demolish them. The group is dismayed by the Council’s stance which seems to link major works and repairs to infill development, making residents believe they can’t have one without the other. Now that the rooftop development is cancelled, the repairs must still go ahead.

 

 

Some damaging schemes remain, including the demolition of people's homes and the removal of green space and trees at the Dodson and Amigo Estate and the destruction of a play area at the Elim Estate. Residents are fighting these proposals and they deserve everyone's support. Some schemes, such as the Vauban and Brenchley Gardens have been indefinitely suspended, showing that if you fight, you can win.

 

​

Tanya Murat from Yes to Fair Redevelopment said:

We are in favour of council housing, and we’ve been fighting to defend it from Southwark’s demolitions and sell-offs for the past 20 years. The infill policy is a sign of the failure of Southwark’s housing policy, not a sign of success. We all need to get behind the campaigns to put residents at the heart of housing policy, where democracy matters and that includes our right to have a say over what happens on our estates, our green spaces and our community facilities.

 

 

A Nunhead Estate campaigner said:

 Residents have fought hard to raise awareness of the safety and wellbeing impact of rooftop builds and are hugely relieved the council has made the right decision. It has been exhausting to live with this hanging over our heads. A weight has been lifted.

 

 

George Anthony, Southampton Way Estate said:
Southampton Way Estate was targeted as part of the rooftop development scheme, something that was completely designed and funded before residents were made aware of such plans or even considered. It felt like this was a project that would happen no matter what the residents opinions were! We fought hard and even made contact with the media. The whole idea was ludicrous from the beginning! As a community we came together to express this by means of visible banners that went up around our estate. They may have infill plans ahead for Southampton Way, like when they proposed to build on our green. This is just frightening and although this battle may be won the war is still on and I for one will not be giving up the fight!

 

Common threads emerging as Council tenants rebel over Brent's infill plans

 Newland Court, Wembley Park

Brent Council's project to use space on existing council estates to build new council homes is running into trouble from current tenants.  In a nutshell the council's commendable commitment to house people on the waiting list in council accommodation puts puts the backs up of existing residents  who feel patronised and treated with carelessness, if not disdain.  

Early on the building of 4 bungalows on existing car park and garage spaces encountered opposaition but is now nearing completion.  The saga of Kilburn Square has been frequently covered on Wembley Matters and more recently Rokesby Close, Watling Gardens, Clement Close and Newland Court have all provoked opposition.

There are several themes emerging across the borough. Claims include:

1. Consultation letters not delivered

2. Poor information, wrong information and lack of detail on the consultation letters

3. Consultation web portals that are difficult to access

4. Questions phrased  in  such a way as to provide the answers the council wnts

5. Insufficient time to respond to the consultation

6.  Loss of open space that was previously designed into estates by enlightened architects and planners that became essential during lockdown and loss of mature trees,

7. Estates picked out to cram in much needed affordable housing while the council encourages the building of unaffordable housing, often sold abroad, in other parts of the borough. 

8. The proposals are being made despite the council's lack of response to long-term issues on some of the estates.

Some residents feel that estates are being picked off one by one and suggest that those affected should get together to campaign on these themes.

 

This letter sent to Cllr Promise Knight and Barry Gardiner MP (Brent North) covers some of the issues and more:

OBJECTION LETTER AGAINST A NEW DEVELOPMENT AT INITIAL STAGE OF CONSULTATION IN NEWLAND COURT WEMBLEY HA9 9LZ 

 

I am a tenant living in Newland Court for the last 22 years. I OBJECT to this planned development going ahead at Newland Court in its entirety. I am aware that currently we are at the initial consultation stage of the planning. I am also aware that there will be a further consultation in September 2022. 

 

It is important that I express how this new development will affect residents. 

 

Whether we are tenants in Newland Court as well as adjacent Grendon Garden feel about these new development plans. Several residents feel insignificant at both locations because they did who not receive the Newsletter with the Feedback form when it was supposedly hand delivered to all. 

 

After making a call to Brent Council last week, I found out that the Newsletter was delivered to every household sometime around mid-June 2022. I can confirm I did not receive it. I found out about this after speaking with a neighbour in early July 2022 only to find out that we have to respond by the end of the day of the 12th July 2022. 

 

I was aware of some plans regarding improvements to the Newland Court area has been on the agenda for about by Brent Council for the past three years. However, I as well as other residents knew nothing about this plan until a few weeks ago. We have a very short time to consider the development plan with vague and misleading information provided on the Newsletter. The majority of residents do not see this plan as an improvement like me. It is important to take into account that all residents want a pleasant space. Brent Council could be prioritising the development needs for the existing residents. We will collectively resist any new development that would prejudice safety and the livelihood of our local community. 

 

I recently supported my neighbour Marc with getting a petition signed with residents who oppose this development plan and we asked residents in Newland Court if they got the Newsletter. We went door to door and spoke with many residents. We asked them if they were aware of the development plans and most people did not read it, or did not receive it. I think it is unreasonable to expect to get a realistic input or feedback from the majority of residents and for all of us to consider the information carefully. It is important for all of us that you should provide a more realistic plan. The full extent of the development including all the dimensions and how this will affect our day-to-day lives. We believe that this development will have a direct negative impact on all the community both short term and long term at Newland Court and Grendon Gardens. 

 

It would have been more appropriate if the development plan information had not been casually sent in a Newsletter; when there was a deadline for feedback of the 12th July 12.00 midnight 2022. It is only reasonable to expect this information to have been received via recorded delivery by each resident and leaseholder at Newland Court. Ideally, a reasonable amount of time such as 30 working days to be fair. This would give us more time to raise concerns individually. We should have been provided with links to easy to understand and access drawing; maybe both to scale and a 3D Plan to give clarity. 

 

At Newland Court, we had the impression that the garages were going to be knocked down to make more car parking spaces for the residents. For many years we have been aware of that, all the Garages have Asbestos on the roofs. It is more important to address the problem with Asbestos as well as the drainage in the grounds around and between the Garages. The drains haven’t been cleaned for many years and there are issues already with flooding. However, it makes perfect sense for Brent Council to demolish the existing Garages and make more parking spaces for the existing residents instead of building these 7 town houses planned. 

 

EXISTING MATERIAL CONSIDERATIONS OVERLOOKED & IMPACT OF NEW DEVELOPMENT ON THE LOCAL RESIDENTS 

 

Brent Council has done nothing about tackling the ongoing problems with Fly tipping, lighting in communal areas, not enough refuse bins both general and recycling, no proper security gates at the entrance, no marked parking bays, no disabled parking bays; just to name a few safety concerns raised with Brent Council over at least the last 5 years. 

 

The gate for emergency access at one end, towards the end of by 55-60 Newland Court, which has been broken for at least 10 years, it has never been repaired or fixed. The padlock on the gate has been stolen or removed many times in the last few years; Whenever it has been reported to Brent Council, they still take up to 3 weeks to replace a lost or stolen padlock every time . This is supposed to be an emergency access but because it is adjacent to Forty Avenue, many drivers normally using the busy Forty Avenue have been using it as a short cut speeding down the road without a care in the world. This is dangerous especially as many families with young children live here and they play in the little greenspace by this road after school, weekends and in school holidays. This space is close to the road and we need Brent Council to consider the safety concerns we have as existing residents’; not ignore the safety concerns we have raised many times and then decide to erect 7 houses directly on top of us. 

 

This development plan will damage the character of our street. It will psychologically affect all the residents, local community as a whole and it is not in the public interest to proceed. In accordance with the new plan, Disabled and Older Person’s walking access will be restricted as well as Wheelchair user access to name just a few concerns. 

 

We have had significant problems with the Refuse bins are overfilled. There are no cameras to deter fly tipping and it is happening on a regular weekly basis. There are no consequences for fly-tippers and this has been going on for years. There are Refuse bins for general waste as well as Recycling but they are not enough for the 60 flats at Newland Court. At present, they are located between garages, some under the flats on the greenspace, and some in the designated area .The new plan shows only one designated space for the placing of the existing bins; which residents in that Block deem to be unacceptable. This simply is unrealistic and inconvenient, as the bins will not be able to fit in that small space .It looks like we will have lines of large bins right outside the blocks to ensure there are enough bins. We strongly believe this will be impractical, very unpleasant, and dangerous for children to have to play in the small green space left. Local Infrastructure, as well as the green space will be practically gone; especially if you erect a concrete jungle, looking play area for the children. This consideration in the development plan to entertain the new kids on the block; or do Brent Council think its compensation for taking the greenspace. The reason I bring this to your attention is because it t has never been a consideration in the past for us residents with kids in Newland Court. 

 

Brent Council has not considered the current issues with parking at all. There are no allocated spaces for the disabled residents or wheelchair users and not enough spaces for the current residents. The new plans show that there will be 11 parking spaces only .I am sure they will be pay and display too. How can this be a consideration for Brent council? when we currently have maybe 30 parking spaces and these are not enough for the residents now. Some Garages are in use for some residents to park their cars; this development plan will be detrimental to those needing access for emergency services, those residents who drive and park here as well as resident motorcyclists, where will they go? Where will delivery drivers park? Where and how will the Refuse Collection vehicles get through to the Refuse Bins when you are narrowing the current road plan? We have no dimensions to view in the space between the proposed development plan and the current layout. Many parking spaces will disappear along with Garages. Are there any safety considerations that Brent Council have identified for drivers? All drivers should be able to see any potential hazard in time to slow down or stop before reaching it. 

 

We have a reoccurring issue with parents picking up their children from the Ark Academy and they use our parking spaces, park their cars blocking the emergency exit. I have reported this to WING many times over the years and they do not do anything. This issue is between Mondays to Fridays. At weekends, residents cannot park at Newland Court because if it is not an event day parking is free. So it is FREE for anyone to park here and leave their car for whole day or all weekend .There are no consequences for them only the inconvenience for residents. What can we expect from the new plans that would not make this problem a lot worse? 

 

OUR VOICES MATTER 

 

Instead of addressing the problems, we currently have and listening to us, you are going ignore us and plan to try erect 7 houses to make it worse. How many of the 7 houses will be affordable homes? If you want to reach your target to build affordable homes then stop selling all the land to developers and use the land, you own only for affordable homes that would be fair. Brent Council have already sold enough land in Wembley to private developers. Wembley Park is a concrete jungle of new developments. Why it is that existing residents at Newland Court and Grendon Gardens have to pay the price for your greed? 

 

We have no idea about the dimensions of the planned new development. It will block light for us and for Grendon Gardens. We have come to know that the roots of the large trees will damage the new development because you will need to dig the foundation for the new development. You will have to cut the Trees down the middle at the back of Grendon Gardens because so many are leaning over to Newland Court. 

 

You destroyed the beautiful Tree on the Corner at Masons Court so why  are you providing us with misleading information .We know that you will be removing the Tree at the entrance of Newland Court on the Corner of Corringham Road. You will most likely destroy the smaller existing trees in our greenspace too. How does existing destroying existing Trees and then planting new trees feel justified to you. The new trees cannot replace the charisma of the existing trees by a long shot. 

 

The impact of the construction work alone will cause mayhem on the green area and the road. There is no indication of how long this construction will take and I know residents have a lot a great deal of concern about the disruption, noise, increased safety risk as well as the inconvenience of delivery vehicles and trades people increase. Disabled and Elder residents will not be able to walk freely or use most of the parking spaces as they will be taken up by the construction for a significant period of time most likely a few years.. This will be very disturbance to the residents and the local community; as access roads and footpaths will be restricted and narrowed during works. They will not wide enough for residents who use a wheelchair , mobility scooter or a pushchair .The lack of outdoor space will have an impact on wellbeing and mental health of the local residents. 

 

There will be a significant Loss of privacy for all the residents affected. This has not been a consideration in this new development plan by Brent Council. I strongly believe the planning of the new 7. houses proposed at Newland Court with the windows that will not be able to open will cause problems of natural lighting in the new houses and a deficit in our natural lighting because these houses will block the natural light. 

 

WE DO NOT HAVE ALL THE FACTS IN THE PLANS FOR THE NEW DEVELOPMENT I would like to draw your attention to the following

5.1 Privacy and amenity Development should ensure a good level of privacy inside buildings and within private outdoor space. Directly facing habitable room windows will normally require a minimum separation distance of 18m, except where the existing character of the area varies from this. A distance of 9m should be kept between gardens and habitable rooms or balconies. Reduced distances between new frontages may be acceptable subject to consideration of overlooking and privacy as well as high quality design and solutions, which can sometimes mitigate impacts and allow for efficient use of land. For sites within an existing street scene, the distance between front elevations should normally be determined by the character of road widths or setbacks from roads in the area. Windows may be designed to direct views in certain ways and to avoid overlooking in other directions.

https://legacy.brent.gov.uk/media/16411795/brent-design-guide-spd1-nov-2018.pdf

 

We all believe that it is only fair that Brent Council provide us with all the answers to the points myself and other residents at Newland Court and Grendon Gardens have raised. Also provide us with an accurate scale plan with transparency on the dimensions in reference to the above for us to consider further. 

 

Yours faithfully. 

 

TONYA NIAZI

 

Rokesby Place  https://wembleymatters.blogspot.com/2022/05/brent-councils-infill-housing-plans.html

 

Gauntlett Court  https://wembleymatters.blogspot.com/2022/07/letter-lack-of-information-on-brent.html

 

Clement Close  https://wembleymatters.blogspot.com/2022/07/clement-close-residents-set-out-reasons.html

 

Newland Court https://wembleymatters.blogspot.com/2022/07/newland-court-residents-objection-to.html

 

Watling Gardens https://wembleymatters.blogspot.com/2022/06/watling-gardens-rushed-and-incorrect.html

 

Kilburn Square https://wembleymatters.blogspot.com/2022/02/kilburn-square-residents-present-900.html

 

Potential Compulsory Purchase Orders  https://wembleymatters.blogspot.com/2021/07/cabinet-to-approve-last-resort.html

 

Brent's "secret" Council Housing Projects: https://wembleymatters.blogspot.com/2021/08/brents-secret-council-housing-projects.html

 

Ditto - the Council's Response: https://wembleymatters.blogspot.com/2021/09/brents-secret-housing-projects-councils.html

 

Gauntlett Court, and Airspace explained: https://wembleymatters.blogspot.com/2021/10/brents-secret-council-housing-projects.html

 

Newland Court residents' objection to Council plans for the estate

Residents of Newland Court wish to draw attention to proposals for their estate which are another example of in-fill. They have asked Wembley Matters to publish a copy of the letter they are sending to Brent Council. Publication does not indicate Wembley Matters support for every point made but it is important that residents' voices are heard.

NEWLAND COURT AND GRENDON GARDEN RESIDENTS V BRENT COUNCIL

LETTER OF OBJECTION TO PROPOSED BUILDING DEVELOPMENT

 

7th July 2022

I have been a resident at Newland Court for over 30 years and I am taking this opportunity to write to you on behalf of the majority of residents of Newland Court and Grendon Gardens regarding Brent Councils proposal to knock down the garages in Newland Court and build 7 town houses in replacement (4 x 3 bed, 3 x 2bed). I have seen the proposed plans and discussed them with both residents of Newland Court and Grendon Gardens at length. We have collectively concluded that the plans have lots of flaws in them and we will petition against it and seek legal advice.

 

I have been looking at the plan designs for the town houses that Brent Council want to build in Newland Court and these do not give measurements of the lengths and widths of the houses, only the height. However I can see that the plan gives the lengths and widths of the gardens of all the residents’ in Grendon Gardens but does not give the distance in length between the houses being built and the fencing that separates the houses and their gardens. The only measurements of the houses are in sq metres which only explain size in area therefore is quite misleading. 

 

 

The residents of Grendon Gardens trees in their gardens lean over and grow across the fencing into Newland Court by up to 3 metres in some areas so there is no way you can build houses without cutting half of one side of all the trees that are on the Newland Court side of the fencing and also as you build the foundation of the houses downwards, you will be destroying most of the roots of the trees. Basically, you would need to remove most of the trees to build houses on the proposed site. This will have a significant impact on the trees and the greenery that gives us privacy and creates a peaceful and scenic view to the area now. 

 

 

In our collective opinion there are lots of flaws in the new development planning and design. Not only would it not be practical if you had to destroy or remove the trees to be able to build houses in the areas specified as this is a conservation area but this would ignite uproar especially with Greenpeace campaigners and Environmentalists’ alike. It would create anxiety not only with the residents of both sites who will be impacted, but more specifically Newland Court residents who are worried about the effect it would have on their mental state of mind. 

 

 “-No trees to the properties of Grendon Gardens will be removed. An arboricultural

impact assessment will be submitted as part of the planning application-

 -The new houses will not directly overlook the properties on Newland Court and

Grendon Gardens, as the windows have been designed to face south, east

    and west to avoid any overlooking-“ 

 

Which is a deception as the 7 proposed houses’ windows will be facing south overlooking our flats, and will invade our space and privacy. The present paving and green space will be further reduced by building the houses outwards south and both new and old buildings will be overlooking each other quite closely, which will have a negative affect our everyday lives. So our privacy will be taken away from us yet I see in the plans that the new houses will have their own courtyard and bin area. Newland court will have an even smaller bin area than we have now and there are currently not enough bins at present to service the 60 flats here and yet your plans are to reduce them in further. 

 

 

This is going to cause a great deal of chaos as in the plans the bins will sit in a built area on the greenery further restricting the little green space we do have and possibly causing the perfect environment for infestation of rats which is already causing fear and great concerns within the tenants at Newland Court. The reduction in Bins and the site where you plan to locate them will be extremely unpleasant and unacceptable right below one blocks kitchen windows for us to smell all the rubbish constantly. You may not be aware that there is always an overflow of the bins towards the latter part of the week so rubbish will be exposed and probably scattered as there will be more rubbish and less space to service 60 flats.

 

 

At present we do not have enough bins to service the 60 residents’ at Newland Court so we cannot imagine the frustration and inconvenience reducing them will be like. Another issue which has been raised by most of the residents is that because there are no security gates and not enough street lighting in communal areas and cameras, fly tippers come and fill up our bins with building waste materials and other stuff as soon as our bins have been emptied which happens frequently and they to do this because there are no consequences for them to worry about. They come not only at night but in the day time too and I have been attacked and almost run over when I have tried to confront them.

 

We have had rat issues for many years and both Newland Court and residents of Grendon Gardens have been significantly impacted by the frequent problem because at present we always have over flowing bins. It is simply unreasonable and inconsiderate for our bins to be further reduced unless collections are done twice a week instead of once a week for both regular general waste bins and recycling bins. This is very unlikely to happen as they sometimes only come once a fortnight, hence the growing problem. Almost all the residents at Newland Court, especially those who have lived here for 10 years or longer have suggested you fit proper security gates at both ends of Newland Court to prevent our homes and vehicles being vandalised or burgled, our families and kids being harassed by drug dealers or mugged on our little estate.

 

Everybody usually using Forty Avenue /Forty Lane use Newland Court as a cut through to The Avenue or other neighbouring streets or as a meet up or stop off for eating and drinking or drug smoking or dealings right under our noses. This has intensified in the recent years and elder residents and children cannot walk freely because of the lack of security and bad lighting.  Between the last two blocks (42 to 48 and 55 to 60 Newland Court) it is easy to see the broken gate where the padlock goes missing every 4 to 6 weeks and a raised wall area where everybody sits and meet up to drink, eat, shout and either deal or take drugs. At night it is very dark in that spot and have asked Brent Council for lights to be put on the walls in that area numerous times.

 

There are currently limited and inadequate parking spaces for the residents of Newland Court and since Brent council deployed an inept parking firm (WING) to control the parking, at weekends it is free to park which is extremely inconvenient to residents as we can’t find parking spaces. On weekend event days, event goers can freely park so that residents on Newland Court have to keep parking on nearby roads and have to keep moving their cars around during the day until a space is available if at all. Also WING only sends a parking attendant on weekdays 2-3 times a month.

  

We currently have spaces for at least 30 cars which are not enough and there are at least 5 disabled residents that I know of however there are no disabled parking bays at present in Newland Court and in your new plans parking spaces seem to have reduced significantly to approximately 12 parking spaces. A total of 12 car spaces to service 60 flats and 7 new houses is very inconsiderate. This will cause more problems between residents, more double parking and possible congestion in the local streets as well. How can you possibly justify the few parking spaces as reasonable? 

 

What are your suggestions for the new residents in the proposed 7 new houses and where are the present residents of Newland Court going to park their cars? I guess that is why Brent Council stopped charging us for permits from 2022 to soften the blow of your new plans of building these new homes. You have also rented a Portacabin for the cleaner taking up 2 car parking spaces at a rental cost of £220 per week which has been parked there for about 2 years now at the cost of £22,880 so far. It runs on a diesel generator and when it is running, it emits diesel fumes which rises and comes through our windows for us to inhale. What happened to Brent Council going greener???

 

Having lived at Newland Court for more than half of my life I could write a book on how Brent Council have wasted money and resources on the unnecessary wrong things and not spent money on the right things which I have already highlighted earlier. Another example is when someone stole the inner plastic bin from the main food waste bin so that the refuse collectors refused to empty it. The food waste bin filled up with food waste till it overflowed and the stench that it caused which attracted rats as big as cats. After dozens of calls complaining about the issue it still took over 6 months to be replaced. Just simple things like that which takes Brent Council so long to resolve.

 

We have had to endure loads of disruption over the years with building works when the double glazing was installed. When the kitchen and bathrooms were renovated and recently when the roof was replaced and every single time the predicted time scale over ran for months. The scale of this proposal would be hugely disruptive to the residents in Newland Court, Corringham road and Grendon Gardens for at least the next 2-3 years. No matter what time scale you give because this project is massive and residents are worried about the detriment to their mental health and wellbeing which will be impacted from the stress of noise and the disruption to the area.

 

At present Brent Council have been building a tiny block of 8 flats in a tiny plot at the entrance into Newland Court on the corner of the Avenue and Corringham road by Mason Court. This has not disrupted the lives of the residents of Mason Court because it is to the side of Mason Court but has taken almost 2 years and is still not finished. It was supposed to have been finished by March 2022 and has been hugely disruptive with delivery trucks blocking the entrance into Newland Court several times and destroying the recently laid new paving. Brent Council have since erected new large wooden stumps to prevent trucks from parking on the pavement.

 

Brent Council says that there is a shortage of land to build on yet Brent Council have allowed private investors to buy up all the land around Wembley stadium and the surrounding areas to build unaffordable skyscrapers which are bought by foreign investors who rent them out to only those who can afford them. Why didn’t Brent Council build housing on some of the land at least knowing housing crisis have been here for years and years??? Brent Council moved their headquarters to the Civic Centre (at a cost of about £90 million but rumoured to be a lot more) from the former Brent Town Hall on Forty Avenue and sold the land which is now a private French School. That land could have been used to create 100’s of council homes.

 

There are numerous little plots of open spaced land scattered across Brent that could be used for homes. There are lots of derelict homes and then of course the former Unisys building on the corner of Harrow Road and the North Circular that has stood empty for 25 years in legal disputes. Over the years we have seen 2 petrol stations and a pub disappear from Forty Avenue only to be replaced by private residential flats and the Sattavis community centre on the corner of Forty Avenue and The Avenue which was promised to be a community centre for the locals but has turned out to be a hardly used private hire hall used only once a month or every couple of months. Why didn’t Brent Council buy up those plots when they were up for sale and build homes????

 

Our suggestion is that most of the unused garages be knocked down and sufficient parking spaces made for residents of Newland Court including a few disabled bays as there are at least 5 disabled residents living in Newland Court. A proper security gate at both entrances into Newland Court installed and the side entrances locked permanently to prevent not only vehicles but pedestrians cutting through the estate dumping their rubbish in our bins which includes residents of Corringham road who causally walk into Newland Court with their bin bags. This would also stop fly tippers filling our bins up in the middle of the night. Sufficient lighting and security cameras like other estates have. We need to be heard and we need you to take every angle into consideration. Thank you for your consideration.

 

Yours sincerely,

Marc Etukudo

 

On Behalf of Newland Court and Grendon Garden residents.

 

 

 

1.    This derelict house in Barn Hill with overgrown shrubs even leading to the front door. It has looked empty and not lived in for at least the last 2 years. This house could be used to house a family unit.

 

  

2.   The Sattavis community centre on the corner of Forty Avenue and The Avenue which was promised to be a community centre for the locals but has turned out to be a hardly used private hire hall used only once a month or every couple of months.

 

 

3.   Another derelict house on the corner of Wembley Park Drive and Wembley Hill Road that has also stood empty for over 15 years. Looking like an eyesore with another excuse of an ongoing legal battle.  

 

 

 

4.   The Unisys buildings that have lain derelict and unused for over 20 year in a costly legal battle between Brent Council and the Bridge Park/ Harlesden community. 

 

 

Isn’t it time that Brent Council and the Bridge Park/Harlesden community stopped wasting time and money on this long legal battle and come to an agreement or split the land equally or are we going to see another 20 years of to and fro of legal actions. A redevelopment would improve the environmental quality of the area and create an attractive gateway to the borough and Bridge Park. There are numerous other homes or sites in Brent that lie empty and could have homes built on.