Travelodge granted planning permission for hotel at Vauxhall bus station

Travelodge have received consent from Lambeth Council to build a new hotel at Vauxhall Bus Station that is expected to open by September 2012 (in time for the Paralympics, at least).  I wrote a post last year giving more details of the planned 148 bedroom Travelodge in Vauxhall.  I was quite positive about the development, considering that retail outlets on the ground floor would offer additional possibilities for commuters and locals on what is essentially at present a concrete island containing a lone Starbucks.  However, the Vauxhall Society objected on the basis that the application didn't come with an environmental assessment...  It seems Lambeth thought the positives outweighed the negatives.

Salmon Developments (the developers) have a few shots of how they expect the hotel to look.  It's worth noting that the six-storey building is to be constructed after the destruction of the current building on site, so that might cause a little mess for a year or so!

The formal address of the hotel is likely to be 1-9 Bondway, but hotel residents will (at least on one side) look on to the magnificent Vauxhall transport hub as they rub their bleary eyes in the morning.   Still, according to Property Week, the Travelodge central London development manager noted:

"There is no better location for a hotel in Vauxhall than this..."

I'm not so sure!  I'd have thought that the river views of the Albert Embankment might be more attractive.  But it's a central location, offers budget to medium-range accommodation and is likely to benefit commuters and local people who desire a more diverse range of shops/restaurants in the area.

Proposed 44-storey tower scheme on Newington Butts revived and Cycling on Southern Elephant Roundabout?

London-SE1 is reporting that the planned 44-storey tower on 80 Newington Butts (site of the former London Park Hotel) has been revived.  In its former incarnation, it was named by the developer First Base as "London 360" and recognisable by the unusual "fins" planned for the the top of the tower.  Southwark Council approved the site for the development of a 44 storey (mostly) residential tower back in 2007, but the scheme failed to complete due to the Homes and Communities Agency deciding it no longer represented good value for money.   The Homes and Community's Agency apparently intend to appoint a new developer to continue with the old scheme (which somewhat fails to make sense of the "not good value for money" point).

You can take a look at the most recent planning application for the site (transport related proposals) on Southwark's Planning site at 11/AP/0406.  Note that the postcode is wrong on the Southwark Planning Portal; it should be SE11 4QU. 

On a geograpically related note... Last July, Kennington People on Bikes wrote to Transport for London to check whether Toucan crossings (which allow pedestrian/cyclist use) were being installed at the junction that replaced the old Southern Elephant roundabout.  TFL confirmed that they'd install a toucan crossing, but KPOB has noticed they're installing pelicans... Naughty...

130 - 138 Newington Butts - Planning Exhibition for Affordable housing from Dolphin Square Foundation

(Image (c)Google 2010 and taken from Google Streetview)

I've received notification of a Planning Exhibition to be held by the Dolphin Square Foundation on the possibility of building (mostly social housing) on 130-138 Newington Butts, a sadly neglected commercial building squeezed between Jewson Building Yard and student accommodation.  Back in 2008, a company applied for permission to build a mixed-use development (08/02352/FUL), but withdrew the application before it had been heard.  Dolphin Square Foundation (a charity) hope to place 49 affordable homes, 30 low-rent homes and 4 private flats on the site.  The flats/houses will range from 5 storeys to 8 storeys across the site.

The exhibition about the development is to be held on Saturday 12th March at from 10:30-15:30 on site at 130-138 Newington Butts, SE11 4QU.  See posters below (click to enlarge) for more details.

Developing this piece of land is, in my view, a great idea. The site's current building has been dilapidated for years and is a real eye-sore.  There are two matters that should probably receive further consideration...  Low-rent housing is often rented through housing associations by members with children.  Newington Butts is an extremely busy intersection which receives traffic from both Kennington Lane and Kennington Park Road, and is likely to have very high levels of noise.  I'm presuming that noise could be dealt with by triple glazing, but living on a main road can be hazardous and I'd hope that play space, away from the road, was planned for children.

Commments?

Sainsbury's (Nine Elms) Exhibition (redirect)

This is just a quick bookmark post to note that when I tried to attend the Sainsbury's planning exhibition last Friday at about 19:45, it was closed (I must have got the time wrong).  I did also request at PDF of slides shown at the Waterloo Community Development Group (which I presume would be similar to what was on display at the exhibition) from Jonathan Rawnsley, the Sainsbury's Development partner, but I haven't received those either.

Consequently, I'm going to point you to Tradescant Road blog post on the most recent Sainsbury's exhibition. Tradescant attended on Saturday and has posted some sketches of what might possibly be the ugliest cluster of square buildings I have ever seen (other than possibly the Bondway).  Tradescant also notes that the original plans have been amended since the last consultation...  You can read the updates at the Sainsbury's Nine Elms website here (although many of the picture links appear to be broken).

I will continue to point out that despite promises of a public square (won't we already have one of those over at CLS's Vauxhall Square?), there is no additional public green space in the proposal.  There is a cleverly worded piece on the Sainsbury's website which reads as follows:

"We have listened to the feedback that we have received. One of the important messages that we heard was that people valued open space when new homes are provided. Therefore we have removed one residential block since our first exhibition and increased the level of green space for the enjoyment of residents."

It is extremely important to note that in their feedback to the first consultation, people requested and valued "open" space. Yet, Sainsbury's are providing green space that will only be available for the enjoyment of residents in their new blocks.  Bearing in mind the rumours of the shrinking size of the Nine Elms linear park, and the dearth of green space beteween Vauxhall Park and Battersea Park and the Bondway being refused on grounds of lack of green space, it seems immensly foolish to me to attempt a planning proposal that contains no green space for the enjoyment of both new and current residents.  At the KOV meeting last month, I bumped into somebody who mentioned performing social work with residents on the Wandsworth Road, and noted that people are unaware of the high levels of deprivation and poverty in that area.  Providing a "residents only" roof garden (in spite of other provisions for a learning centre) is not a positive commitment to the area from a developer with a "responsible" reputation such as Sainsbury's.  Enough said.

New scarecrows for Cottington Community Garden

Back in February, there was a furore on Twitter, as Cottington Community Garden Centre declared that it's scarecrow, J-Lo had been stolen.  Despite plenty of folk putting the word around, she was never recovered, so they've had to obtain two new scarecrows. (What's the plural of scarecrow?).

If you wish to attend the unveiling of the two new "royal residents" (that provides a big clue), there will be a scarecrow unveiling and a greenhouse launch on Saturday 2nd April at 12pm at Cottington Community Garden (Opal Street, SE11).  More info here.

New Covent Garden Market Exhibition (photos all viewable from booklet)

(Image taken from p23&24 of The Garden at New Covent Garden Market Public Exhibition March 2011 Booklet )

Just a quick note to say that I dropped into the New Covent Garden Market exhibition in Nine Elms / Battersea today.  Had I known that all of the exhibition boards (including photos) were available from this booklet online, I might not have made the trek!  However, if you want to see the photos in their huge blown-up form, it might be worth a trip.  I was also given a very useful introduction to the exhibition by one of the Market's representatives on site, who noted that their plans are only in outline, and that if all goes to schedule the proposals will be submitted to Wandsworth Council this summer (2011) and decided at a Planning Committee to be held at the end of 2011.  (Clearly, that's a big "if", but maybe Wandsworth are very proactive).  If the development went ahead, building works would likely start some time in 2013.

I might add further comments on the New Covent Garden plans at some stage.  Most controversially, they're selling off the Flower Market, currently sited at Vauxhall to pay for a new combined wholesale and flower market on the Nine Elms site.  On the old flower market, there are plans for two very tall towers, billed as the "gateway" to the linear park (which is interesting, considering I vaguely thought that Vauxhall Square (CLS) was billed in the same way.  Considering that we're doomed to end up with all of these towers, a few more won't make any difference, right?

Folk from the Vauxhall end may be disappointed that many of the outlines in their book didn't contain any of the towers that are currently proposed eg. Vauxhall Tower (CLS) or Vauxhall Island site (Kylun) or Bondway.  Their diagrams only show the buildings that have been agreed, so it's tricky to imagine from the images how it might look if all of the proposed developments were present.

A musical interlude - Evensong at St Peter's

A Lurking about SE11 reader has emailed details of Choral Services at St Peter's Vauxhall, sung by the St Peter's Singers.  They're currently held on the 4th Sunday of each month at 6:30pm. 

Our correspondent notes that members of the public do not have to be religious to attend Evensong.  It is open to all, free of charge and wine is served afterwards.  The organisers hope to offers a quiet reflective opportunity for participants to listen to a beautiful choir.  The standard is apparently very high.

See more details on the poster below:

The ever onward march of Tesco - application for expansion at main Kennington store

Tesco continue their ongoing march towards world domination with a request for planning permission to expand their ground floor at their largest SE11 store on Kennington Lane.  See
11/00263/FUL.  You have until 10th March to comment.  The site would need a new pedestrian crossing and pick up point, but the expansion would cause the loss of 41 car parking spaces.  It's an interesting move because it looks as though they're either presuming that much custom will move online or come from people who live within walking distance of the store... or...?

Well, the other possibility is that they'll expand on the currently empty piece of land opposite their site, and located next to the Beefeater distillery.  I can't remember whether they own the land next to the distillery, but I think they might.  There's a 1999 planning application that was withdrawn prior to submission,  99/02207/FUL, which shows the street record for Gasholder Place (an original name for a street) with an application submitted by Tesco.  I wonder whether there's a possibility they'll decrease the size of the car park, increase the size of the current store and then claim that there isn't enough parking, so look to expand on the empty land on the other side of Gasholder place?  It's a heavily residential area so I doubt residents would support additional parking, but if my guesswork is close, it's potentially a clever way of expanding the Tescopoly.

Also, I mentioned a while ago that Tesco have plans to open a new metro store in Kennington Park Business Centre and Caldwell Street (opposite Vassall Road).  One local resident asked that I publicise a petition requesting that the Council refuses permission for future expansion.  If you don't support the continued expansion, you might want to sign here. 

Robbery on Kennington Park Road on 27th February - appeal for witnesses

Lambeth Police are appealing for witnesses to a robbery that occurred last Sunday (27 February) at 1am on Kennington Park Road. 

A white man in his thirties (6'2" in height, bald head, large build, wearing a navy blue top) attacked a couple who were on their way home from a glam rock fancy dress party.  The female member of the couple was knocked to the ground, and her male partner fought off the attacker who fled the area.

At that point, the couple were confronted by four black men (in their twenties) who demanded a mobile phone.  The male victim defended himself again and fought with one of the men who he managed to chase away.  At the same time, another one of the attackers took the bag of the female victim which had fallen to the floor in the earlier attack.

Anyone with information is encouraged to call DC Michael Quinlan of Lambeth Borough police who is investigating this case on 020 8649 2478. Alternatively you can report information anonymously to Crime stoppers on 0800 555 111. 

The police appeal can be found here.

Child stabbed outside Manley House in Kennington

I've received reports that at approximately 8:20pm this evening, a male child was stabbed outside Manley House, Black Prince Road in Kennington.  Police were called and and the child was taken to hospital by ambulance.

Reminder: KOV meeting tonight with accompanying agenda

I'm just issuing a quick reminder that there's a Kennington Oval Vauxhall (KOV) forum meeting at 7pm (or 6.30pm for 7pm) at St Anne's Settlement Centre, Harleyford Road, (entrance in Vauxhall
Grove) SW8 1TD.  

The Sainsbury's Towers and Vauxhall Square 'twin towers' development are both on the agenda so feel free to read the history so far.  The rest of the agenda appears below:

1. Welcome, introductions and apologies

2. Minutes of previous Meeting (1 November 2010)

3. Vauxhall Square - Richard Trice of CLS Holdings - For more info, visit www.vauxhallsquare.co.uk

4. Proposals for Sainsbury's store, Nine Elms

5. Vauxhall Opportunity Area and community involvement - Cllr Sally Prentice

6. Vauxhall Opportunity Area Planning Framework – Amendments to Section 106 Funding Chapter

7. Chair’s Report

8. Board and Forum members’ updates

9. AOB

10. Date of next scheduled meeting: 7 April 2011

New Covent Garden Market exhibition on The Garden (3rd March - 5th March)

(Sketch taken from New Covent Garden website)

Covent Garden Market Authority (CGMA) has announced the dates for the third public exhibition of their plans for "The Garden" (the UK's largest fresh produce market) at New Covent Garden Market in Vauxhall / Nine Elms as 3rd March - 5th March (see below).

There have been two previous exhibitions on New Covent Garden Market (one in 2009 and the other in February 2010).  For some reason, I don't seem to have a record of these, but it's only recently I've begun to track the buildings so closely.  However, the redevelopment section on the New Covent Garden website is truly comprehensive, so I suggest you begin there if you're interested in the progress of their ideas.   Also, there are some sketches available from one of the previous exhibitions which give the general idea of New Covent Garden's aim, even if these will be amended at the next exhibition.

Anyhow, most local people I've spoken to have been generally supportive of plans to sensitively redevelop the market (currently it's a bit of a concrete wilderness, and is not accessible to the public except on Sundays when it hosts a giant boot fair). So, now New Covent Garden Market claim to have incorporated comments received a wide range of stakeholders and tenants on the Market.  The third (and final) exhibition will display new information and images about all the elements of the site prior to the application submission to Wandsworth Borough Council.

The exhibition will be based in the Yvonne Carr Community Centre on Thessaly Road (in Battersea) so it's a bit of a trek for Vauxhall residents although the site plans will affect people in SW8 and SE11 just as much as in Battersea.
Thursday 3 March (4.00pm – 8.00pm)
Friday 4 March (4.00pm – 8.00pm)
Saturday 5 March (10.00am – 5.00pm)

Please note that this falls on the same weekend as the next Nine Elms Sainsbury's consultation.

Need support for new playground for Vauxhall Gardens Estate Residents and Tenants Association

Vauxhall Gardens Estate Residents and Tenants Association (VGERTA) need support in their attempt to win a £15,000 bursary for new playground equipment. They're currently trying to upgrade and revive a playground that lies on the heart of the estate.

The bursary campaign, Ready for Ten, is being run by Patsy Kensit and VGERTA have nominated their own playground to receive the funds.  You may remember that they progressed quite a long way, but were ultimately unsuccessful with a similar campaign that Bovril ran last year.  I know how much time and energy it takes for residents to win small amounts of money to upkeep playgrounds and I really want to wave the flag for whoever it is at VGERTA that remains so persistent.

Please do consider supporting them by registering and leaving a comment on the Ready for Ten VGERTA playground page here and there's also a link to their playground video on that site.  I registered and you can see my comment on the site:

It's very easy to register and make a comment, and winning the bursary would be such a boost for local children on the VGERTA estate.  I've noted:

"The Vauxhall Gardens Estate playground would strongly benefit from receiving a bursary for their playground.. This playground is in quite a run down area of inner London in a location that contains a smaller amount of green space per head than allowed for by government recommendations. In the surrounding area, at least three staffed Adventure playgrounds are at threat of closure so ensuring that there is somewhere for local children to play that will remain open is vital for keeping fit and teaching play skills. The current playground is rather run down and residents have been exploring a whole variety of routes to improve it, but in an age of government cuts, this is looking less and less viable..."

Sainsbury's Towers Consultation

I popped along to the Waterloo Community Development Group meeting about the proposed Sainsbury's Towers this evening.  I'm not sure I learned very much other than what was already made public at the previous exhibition last November.

My only new piece of information is that unfortunately, the main bit of green space in the development will not be public, and will only be accessible to residents.  So, we're looking at more concrete, and space for a market.  It probably needs more thought in light of the Bondway decision, but this is just a quick post to alert you to the next consultation to be held on the 4th and 5th of March.  I don't have time or place yet, but will update when I do.

Oval Farmers' Market Celebration in April: Planning Permission Granted

So, the good news for the excellent Oval Farmers' Market is that they were granted planning permission to, umm, continue!  I'm not sure how they managed to get the market started /without/ planning permission, but they did, and now it has been offically confirmed that they can stay.  Hurray!

In celebration of their successful application, Oval Farmers' Market are holding a special market on Saturday 2nd April, where there will be a "feast of local produce, plants, shrubs and locally baked and prepared foods of all kinds".  Nom, nom, nom.

I'm afraid there's no word on whether they'll be able to go ahead with their future plans, which were exhibited last year, but I'll update you all with news once it is sent to me.

Oval market is held every Saturday between 10am and 3pm, and is popular with locals.