Local Tesco smashed to pieces and 281 Kennington Lane refurb

Some of you might have missed the great Tesco-drink-and-smash, being that the store is at the north end of Kennington, but the new Tesco Express at 38-40 Kennington Park Road had its windows decimated at about 1am on Thursday 19th May. 

I assumed from the damage that it was a van job where a gang had tried to steal the cash machine (on the far left of the top photo, you can see the window has been entirely boarded up).  Apparently not.  Tesco may regret their decision to open next to a pub!  It turns out that the extensive damage to all of the front windows is just the work of one very drunk man!  Somebody doesn't like Tesco...

In other news, some of you may have noticed that big gay Tesco on 281 Kennington Lane is currently being refurbished and is consequently closed.  It's going to be re-arranged and presumably enlarged somewhat and will reopen on Monday 30th May.  I've no reason to assume that stock control will improve in any way or that they'll fix the freezers, so it might just be a re-arranged disaster zone as usual, but you never know...

Business closures, business openings and a potential fire

This post is a brief update with lots of bits and pieces that people send me, and questions asked.  None of it quite warrants a post of its own.

Business Closures
* St Aubyn's Holistic centre on Cleaver Street closed down (or appears to have done) in late December.

*  The antique dealer on Windmill Row (opposite Thai Ming) has sold, but construction appears to be taking place there, so that might yield something interesting.

* Finishing Touch on Kennington Lane (apparently, Kennington's longest serving hairdresser) closed on 3rd January and the building is up for sale.  (It's just on the corner of White Hart Street).

Business Openings
* The burned out old sandwich shop at 345 Kennington Road next to the Pizza Hut takeaway has a planning application on it.  According to a an email sent to me by a reader (thank you), it's been burned out for 20 years so it's about time something happened.  Unfortunately, it doesn't appear from the application 10/04211/FUL that any retail space is planned, and the proposal is for a some type of 4 room bedsit.  However, it's probably far better used for accommodation than left in its burnt out state.  It's still in the planning process so has yet to be agreed.

* A new bar has opened in Vauxhall, JD's place, at 353A Kennington Lane.  The interior is minimalist and quite funky with sprayed murals of Tower Bridge on one side and St Paul's and the city on the other.  Lunch is served from 12pm to 6pm (baguettes from £2.50) and dinner from 6pm to 10pm (burgers from £5.49), but when I popped in on Friday night, the music was so loud that I felt it was more a place to drink than a place to eat.  For pre-clubbing drinks and snacks, I can see it might be popular..

* Tesco on Kennington Park Road (around the corner from Toulouse Lautrec) opened in late December.  The site goes much further than I expected, and it's not a bad size for a small store.  I spoke to the folk next door in the fantastic Old Red Lion pub who think that business has improved as a result of the new store opening (which is one good thing) and I have to admit that I prefer Tesco to the previous store that was on the site.  Tesco need somebody to manage their community notice board, so go and feel free to speak to the manager if you want to do that.  Another plus point is that they've stuck a free cash point on the front of the store, and it's not easy to get cash around those parts.

* A new Londis has opened on Kennington Park Road opposite Kennington Park.

Refurbishments
* The laundrette next to the funeral parlour on the corner of Kennington Road and Kennington Park Road is being refurbished and turned into something (not clear what yet).  That's quite positive as that row of shops looked quite drab.

* One reader tells me that the Old Amici's is alive with construction (I think this is the one on Kennington Road).  Anybody any further news?

Fire?
* One reader wonders whether anybody heard or saw anything reported in relation to Costa Coffee, as apparently, the smell of burned coffee could be detected in the area and smoke was viewed from Lambeth Walk.  (It might just be normal operation.  Who knows?)

Recladding
* The Ethelred Estate tower blocks have been reclad, and are now no longer a dingy brown colour.  They look very very good, and one of them had its scaffolding removed, only to be re-scaffolded to be cleaned when dirty streaks were revealed!  The towers are still mostly covered as we speak, but when they're finished, they're going to be impressive again.

Change of use due to expire on 216 Kennington Road, preventing possible Tesco arrival

The new Tesco planned for Kennington Park Road has been developed relatively quickly, and permission has been requested to install air conditioning, fridges and lighting.  All of the posts on the matter can be found under the 38-40 Kennington Park Road tag.  I'd guess that the Tesco will be up and running before the end of 2010.

But today, it's heads up to Sean Creighton (known locally for his useful and detailed newsletters) from RCDT/LMHS who has informed us that the original planning permission (obtained back in 2007) to change 216 Kennington Road from D2 (assembly and leisure usage) to A2/B1a (services and business use) has nearly expired.  The original 2007 application is  07/01817/FUL. (It's due to expire on 17/1/2011).  The use of this building as a supermarket (allegedly Tesco) has been contentious from the start, on account of the fact that it was originally set aside under Section 106 for community use, but was missed off the Council's list, and the usage expired.  One interesting point that I've heard reiterated by several locals is that there were a number of nearby community organisations who hoped to use the building.  Whenever anybody telephoned the agents (I tried myself on several occasions), the caller is always told that a tenant has been found and the building is "being held".  Nothing much has happened in the intervening three years, other than numerous alterations of planning applications re. times of shopping delivery by lorry and the numbers of flats that may be built.

If local people from a variety of organistions were to object to the 216 Kennington Road Tesco being re-granted a change of use, and the Council were to agree (tricky, since they granted the permission above ), then there's a chance that local organisations might get a look in again.  The new application for change of use can be found under 10/03318/FUL on the Lambeth Planning database.

I used to be rather vociferously against the use of the site for a Tesco on account of the fact it was intended for community use.  More lately I've pondered that it would be better to be occupied than for it to remain empty.  But sitting on an empty building for three years and failing to develop it means that an organised community campaign (on the basis the building was always intended for the community, and Lambeth Council messed up) might well release the building for locals again.  The key question of course, is whether any local organisation has the money to lease it?

Brand new Tesco due to arrive at 38 - 40 Kennington Park Road

Further to my speculative posts, here and here, I can definitely announce the arrival of a brand new Tesco at 38-40 Kennington Park Road.  Tesco have taken a 15 year lease on the building from 19th April 2010 so I imagine that they'll open it as soon as the refurbishment is finished.  Tesco do not own the freehold.  I'm afraid I don't know whether Shakra services will remain (maybe someone else has more info.), but I suspect not.  Considering that we're now nearly 5 months into a relatively short lease, I imagine Tesco will be trying to open it ASAP.  Oddly, (but this is probably what attracted Tesco), it looks as though the land also has a right of way (including vehicles) over Opal Street.  That means (I suspect) that delivery to the building will take place at the back (which may well disturb residents of Opal Street) and it's close to a children's ball court.  What I'm not clear is whether the Opal Street residents will be able to enter the supermarket from their street or whether they'll just face the inconvenience of extra traffic without being able to gain easy access.

If Tesco manaage to open the proposed 216 Kennington Road branch, that will make 3 Tescos in SE11, which must be something of a monopoly, considering that we're a tiny postcode.  Still, Tesco is one of those shops that everybody likes to complain about and then inevitably ends up purchasing from.  It should benefit local residents at the north end of the road, and there's a dearth of shops in SE17 near Penrose Street, so I'm sure they'll receive plenty of custom.  Perhaps it will increase business at the Old Red Lion too, and I'm hopeful that Mansion House pub might be either re-opened or used by another business.

There's a huge amount of local news and goings on at the moment.  Expect further updates soon.

Update (1/10/2010) - as well as the signage application (see comments below), there's now an application (10/03220/FUL) for installation of air conditioning and fridges etc. so it's moving forward slowly.

Red Lion pub to become Old Grey Lion and more on new Tesco

It seems as though there are some rather slow changes afoot on the northern section of Kennington Park Road. Perhaps this is spurred by the road's proximity to the long-awaited Elephant and Castle social-engineering project regeneration.

I mentioned yesterday that I'd heard a rumour about a proposed new Tesco on Kennington Park Road. I was getting confused, and thinking that this referred to the store opposite to the tube at 62 Kennington Park Road. That's the current site of Payless Food & Wine, who appear to be thriving as a result of not quite living up their name. However, upon further investigation and a helpful tip from a reader, it seems that the shop that has closed/is closing is actually at 38-40 Kennington Park Road (Right Price Food & Wine). I've walked past the site, and it hardly strikes me as large enough for a Tesco, even a Metro-sized one, but perhaps it goes back further than I remember.

Even more intriguing is a pub related piece of news that I learned of only in the past few days. Apparently the adequate, large, but somewhat characterless Red Lion pub (42 Kennington Park Road) is to become The Old Grey Lion! It has been purchased by Antic-Ltd who have it listed on their site here. No more info. about that refurbishment at present, but you'll read it here first (hopefully)!

Confusingly, there is another pub, named The Mansion House (46-48 Kennington Park Road) to the South of the Red Lion/Old Grey Lion that has been closed and derelict for some time. I'd like to know what's happening with that, because in the current climate, I doubt the road can sustain two pubs next door to one another! And just because I like to highlight small and under-publicised services in SE11, you might also be interested to know that to the right of Priceright / proposed Tesco is a small gateway that leads through to an organisation named Shaka Services who work mainly with London's African, Carribean and Asian population to provide sexual health / AIDS / social care, housing and immigration services. As far as I know, they're still operative, but I can't find any recent information confirming their status. 38-40 Kennington Park Road is also listed as a needle-exchange. I hope the rumoured Tesco proposal won't jeopardise such vital services.

Tesco expanding their empire in Kennington?

Somebody on Twitter has passed on a rumour that there is a Tesco opening on Kennington Park Road, near Kennington tube station. It's apparently in the place of a 24 hour supermarket that has closed down (although last time I checked, the 24 hour supermarket was still operative).

Does anybody have any more info?