Staples Corner-Dollis Hill will see major changes under the Growth Area Masterplan currently in consultation

 

Brent Council is currently consulting on the Staples Corner Growth Area Masterplan which would see major changes in the Strategic Industrial Land  (SIL) areas in Dollis Hill, new housing, a designated high rise area and better  connections  with green spaces.

The Council claims:

Staples Corner will be transformed into a higher quality and intensified industrial area sitting adjacent to a new urban community. Regeneration and growth will support a rich ecology of industrial and co-located residential uses to create an exemplary 15-minute neighbourhood where people live, work and interact. Intensification will deliver a new and varied supply of modern industrial premises for London’s strategic and local business needs, as well as commercial space, social infrastructure and an improved public realm to support a mixed use residential community.

 

Staples Corner will be enhanced as an attractive, prosperous and sustainable place,

supporting new industrial business and employment growth, as well as welcoming new residents to the neighbourhood.

 

 

Protecting and intensifying the majority of the industrial land solely for industrial

purposes, but allowing some either for a mix of uses incorporating some industrial or for

residential led development, will deliver:

 

• Modern, fit for purpose industrial spaces for local businesses including logistics,

light industrial units and affordable workspace;

 

• Opportunities for employment, skills and training for local people;

 

• A minimum of 2,200 new high quality homes, including affordable homes and

family sized-dwellings;

 

• A range of new local services and community spaces that support interaction and community cohesion;

 

• New open spaces, incorporating play for a range of ages, and public realm

improvements particularly along the North Circular Road and Edgware Road;

 

• A high quality environment that is safe and accessible to everyone;

 

• An industrial movement network that keeps HGV and large vehicles to the

strategic road network, with other streets encouraging walking and

cycling over private motor vehicles, and better connect Staples Corner to the

surrounding area;

 

• A place that achieves the highest standards of sustainability to support a

low carbon circular economy.

The plans include a tall building zone off the Edgware Road with some taller 'marker buildings':

 

The West Hendon redevelopment in neighbouring Barnet with its 'marker' tall building was opposed by Brent  Council because of its impact on the Welsh Harp but it was argued at the time that it would set a precedent that could lead to development close to the banks of the Welsh Harp encouraged by the Council.  The comment included in  the above image 'building masses should consider the setting of the locally listed Welsh Harp reservoir, and also respond sensitively to suburban streets to the south' will be key for many local people and will the impact of tall buildings on the flight paths of breeding and migrating birds.

I can only include a basic outline of these massive detailed documents that can be found on the Council website HERE.

One adopted the Masterplan will used as the framework for future planning decisions in the designated Growth Area area and so it is important to comment now.

CONSULTATION MEETINGS

 

 

June 12^th 12-3pm Bellissima Ristorante

 

June 18^th 10am-2pm Stables Cafe, Gladstone Park

 

June 27^th 12-3pm Bellissima Ristorante

 

July 3^rd 5.30-7.30pm Millennium Business Centre

 

July 10^th 6pm-7pm online

Some creative and practical ideas on the Staples Corner Masterplan consultation. Contribute your thoughts.

 

Staples Corner from above (Brent Council)

It is all too common for Wembley Matters to hear from residents they were not aware of development proposals or consultations. Here, in a guest blog, a resident shares their message to Brent Council on the consultation over the preparation of a Master Plan Supplementary Planning Document (SPD) on the future of the Staples Corner Area.

In TRANSPORT terms, it is currently horrible for pedestrians and cyclists around Staples Corner. Even for motorists.

Brent needs either to take on in battle the London Mayor's 'Transport for London Streets' planners and reduce the amount of ugly and hostile 'severance' that his main roads create in the area, or you need to divide up your Brent plan and turn AWAY from the main roads to treat each area entirely separately.

 

 

Area Map (Brent Council)

 

Given the 'excellent' 24-hour main road access for goods, you should intensify industrial development, perhaps with flatted factories to encourage small businesses. Industrial and commercial areas need a great deal of greening as well though. Thirty years ago you attempted it in Park Royal with 'pocket parks'. Planning guidance must insist on setback and maintainable green borders around all industrial sites. Fencing design is important as well, with no ugly, cheap, bog-standard 'bayonet' galvanised-steel fencing (for a change).

Given the soon-to-open Thameslink station there and the potential 'West London Orbital' London Overground line to Neasden station, Harlesden station, HS2 Old Oak Common and into south-west London, you have high enough 'Public Transport Accessibility Level' values to build new housing at high density (which does not have to mean high buildings). 

Please clarify in your documents what is zoned as 'Strategic Industrial Land' and what is not. Are you planning to change its boundaries? Would there be mitigation (such as higher-density industry in what is retained)?

Pedestrian and cycling crossings across the A5 need to increase in number and quality, and at all side road junctions, with NO 'slip road geometry' on the road corners from the A5, so that LINKED road junction traffic lights / pedestrian crossing lights can keep speeds down to 30mph or below - which would be a novelty.

The main A5 slip roads from the A5 flyover should be reduced in length and width - not intended to reduce capacity but to reduce speeds. They are currently of a scale for 70mph traffic.

Current traffic speeds on the main roads are either near zero when there is congestion, and very high when traffic is light. 

The North Circular Road was going to be a motorway, the 'M15', but the A5 technically was NOT, and that road can be re-urbanised and humanised without much opposition, if you use planning gain money to finance the changes. 

Ex-London Mayor 'Boris-the-Now-Disgraced' had a London-wide 'Roads Taskforce'. That declared that roads should have a MOVEMENT function but also a SENSE OF PLACE function. Brent's task is create the latter on the Staples Corner main roads for the first time since the 1975 'improvements', particularly on the A5 main road.

 

This Brent Council's description of the consultation:

 

Brent’s Local Plan designates Staples Corner for housing and industrial growth, with the ambition to transform the area into a new mixed-use community with at least 2,200 new homes and new business premises fit for modern day occupiers, with an improved environment and supporting infrastructure.

 

To achieve this ambition, the Council is developing a Masterplan that will provide the detailed vision and planning policy framework for regeneration and growth in Staples Corner for the next twenty years.

Brent Council is also preparing a Design Code to set out the design requirements for new developments coming forward in Staples Corner. The design Code would provide greater certainty for communities about the design of new developments to the start of the planning process.

 

Brent will work with local communities and stakeholders to ensure the Masterplan and the Design Code for Staples Corner reflects local aspirations.

 

The Residents' Survey opened on December 1st with little response so far. It closes on 30th April 2023.

LINK TO SURVEY

Brent Council's Utopian plans for Neasden at Cabinet on Monday

 

Brent Council's Cabinet will decide on Monday to go out to consultation on far-reaching plans for the Neasden Stations Growth Area (NSGA) Draft Masterplan.

The Masterpan envisages the long-term transformation of the often derided (particularly by Private Eye LINK) area with co-location (housing and industrial/commercial) development on 5 sites including that of the College of North West London on Dudden Hill. There will be a total of 2,338 new homes plus commercial and light industrial spaces.

"This Masterplan Supplementary Planning Document (SPD) seeks to unlock the massive potential that the Neasden Stations Growth Area (NSGA) has to offer, and define a new place for the post-pandemic world that balances local choices within the wider metropolitan context. The delivery of new workspace, improved accessibility to the wider area, an interconnected network of green open spaces, enhanced public realm and a permeable movement network will create an inclusive neighbourhood that can support at least 2,000 new homes, and also serve as a distinctive gateway to Neasden. This Masterplan SPD sets out the overarching vision for NSGA, and the underpinning urban design framework, to help ensure that the transformation of the existing poor quality environment brings forward physical, social and economic regeneration for all the community."

At times the Masterplan is almost Utopian in its vision:

"A diverse Neasden will be a place that is used and enjoyed by all people, irrespective of gender, age, ethnicity, physical ability, sexual orientation or social background. The natural and built environment will be fairer and more inclusive, reflecting best practice through design to ensure the area is welcoming, responsive, intuitive, flexible, varied and convenient.

With around 25% of the local population aged under 18, Neasden will represent the needs of children and young people, and reflect London’s status as an increasingly youthful city. Children and young people will be able to access social and physical infrastructure and move around the area safely, independently, and without adult supervision, benefitting their physical, social and mental development and health.

Development at Neasden will be child-friendly, maximising opportunities for safe play and outdoor activities. Open spaces will support formal and informal play, exercise and rest, and be accessible to all with no segregation. Open spaces will be well-overlooked by homes and other active uses to ensure they are welcoming and benefit from natural surveillance, overcoming crime and the fear of crime.

With around 55% of the local population identifying as belonging to Black, Asian or minority ethnic groups, Neasden will represent both the needs and cultures of all people. Protected groups will be considered from the outset and given a greater participatory role in shaping how the area evolves through meaningful stakeholder engagement.

Development at Neasden will support different modes of living, catering for multi-generational households, young families, and over 60s, alongside a range of different domestic cultures. Buildings and landscapes will be as much for local people as for new residents, allowing the establishment of a mixed and balanced community that reflects the diversity of the area."

 

The summary for the preferred option is rather more down to earth:

Option 3 proposes vertical stacking of residential uses on podium floors with industrial below and some commercial/retail fronting Neasden Lane is proposed on Site 1 (LSIS) and Site 2 (LSIS). On site 3 (CNWL), proposes predominantly residential development with some commercial/ retail/community uses and retention of the existing housing estate adjacent. On Site 4 (LSIS), vertical co-location of residential uses with industrial uses is proposed. On Site 5, predominantly residential use with some light industrial use is proposed. Site 6 is proposed to be retained as existing and is deemed unviable for development.

The Masterplan is long-term. In Option 3 the estate next to the College of North West London (Severn Way and Selbie Avenue) is not down for redevelopment but it is within the development area and could come forward at a later stage. It does look rather vulnerable in the illustration between the two masses of tower blocks. A further possibility is a new station in the area on the potential West London Orbital line.

The existing green space beside the college at the foot of Dudden Hill/Denzil Road appears unlikely to be retained but instead space will be integrated into the new housing.

Details for each site:

 The 5 Sites

 

It is a huge document and the Cabinet is unlikely to discuss it in any great detail. I have uploaded it on One Drive for readers who wish to read further. Click on the bottom right square for full size version.

Widespread objections to Alperton high rise giant

Guest post by Andrew Linnie.  This issue was covered earlier on Wembley Matters LINK

R55’s Minavil House project in Alperton has been the subject of much debate and controversy for some time now. The tower, standing at 26 storeys, will bring a huge shift in the landscape of the area, and was described by various industry publications as the tallest building in the entire borough. This came as quite a surprise to residents both old and new, as the 2011 Alperton Masterplan adopted by Brent Council set out a vision for the area of buildings up to a maximum of 17 storeys. It would stand to reason that a building a full 9 storeys above the maximum height for the area would be a cause for debate, but Brent Council seemed uninterested in engaging with the discussion.

The proposal shown towering over twelve storeys above its nearest neighbour (Submitted application drawings).

At the planning committee meeting in May, I put forward the concerns of residents in the two minute speaking time allotted to a single objector. It is of note that the council allows three minutes to the developer to put forward their case. Those concerns included the loss of light and sky to surrounding dwellings, the spurious transport impact figures used, and the fact that the building directly contravened the supporting planning document (SPD) for the area. These issues were largely disregarded in the ensuing discussion among councillors and the scheme was approved. None of the three councillors for Alperton (Cllrs Allie, Chohan and Patel) attended the meeting.

At this point I wrote a petition which over 200 residents signed, and further problems with the development were noted. In its disregard for context the project’s density runs off the charts, featuring twice the number of housing units per hectare of neighbouring schemes. A conversation with an independent transport assessor involved with another development in the ward reinforced the assertion that the transport impact figures presented at the meeting – of just two additional passengers per train at peak times – were wildly underestimating the impact of a development this size. The issues of light and sky persisted, and concerns about access and the level of parking provided remain unanswered (there are 251 homes but only 35 parking spaces, most of which are for a Lidl on the ground floor). It also emerged that the architectural justifications for the project’s height from R55’s own online publication misrepresented the scale of neighbouring buildings and created an impression of the constructed landscape rising towards the Minavil site which, in reality, does not exist.

The architectural justification for the project, with the actual numbers of storeys added. It shows large leaps in height between buildings only three storeys apart, and a small step up from 14 to 26 storeys. The image also implies a rising contour between two 11 storey buildings of equal height (R55).

The petition was addressed to MP for Brent North Barry Gardiner, Mayor of London Sadiq Khan, the members of the GLA including our local assembly member Navin Shah, and the councillors for the ward of Alperton and Brent in general.

Mr Gardiner held a meeting in the wake of the Grenfell tragedy in which he addressed the issues of residents in high rise buildings. Present at the meeting were many locals, representatives of housing trusts, Brent Borough Fire Commander Mark Davis, and the Head of Planning for Brent. When pursued by Mr Gardiner on the point of whether such proposals are assessed for their fire risk, the Head of Planning admitted they are not. For a disproportionately tall building with a small footprint, on a site hemmed in by a canal, a bridge and an industrial estate, this added further grave concerns for neighbouring homes.

Though Mr Shah’s office and Mr Gardiner were responsive to the petition, the scheme was passed back from the Mayor of London to Brent for approval with no intervention. Unless the Secretary of State for Planning (Alok Sharma) decides to intervene, the building work will commence, reportedly in November. At that point the debate will inevitably turn from one about this particular site to one about the wider area, and what kind of regeneration the local population want. When commitments are made to residents to lead a regeneration area in a certain direction and then entirely forgotten at the planning committee level, questions must be asked as to whether Brent Council are representing the interests of local people or the interests of developers.

'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