The Herne Hill Society blog

Flower or Power?

A statement by The Herne Hill Society, dated 12 May 2018, follows:

The Herne Hill Society is very concerned to learn of Network Rail’s plan to demolish the Flower Lady Shop next to Herne Hill Station and to replace it with an electricity sub-station.  The shop occupies a prominent position and forms an important part of the attractive mix of small businesses that make up the Herne Hill “village”. This is an area that has undergone huge improvement in recent years and the refurbishment of the Network Rail shops, once completed, will further enhance this. It seems thoroughly perverse to contemplate a development that will do damage aesthetically and commercially to the heart of Herne Hill. We are also concerned at the lack of meaningful prior consultation with the wider community.

The flower shop provides a valuable local asset, the only one in the area. It is a business that Elaine Partleton, a very active and well-respected trader and member of our community, has built up over many years. We question whether alternative sites have been fully explored. Network Rail is a key participant in the community at the heart of Herne Hill and we would expect them to fulfil that role with proper regard and care for the wider interests of all in that community.

 

 

Neighbourhood Plan for Herne Hill

Neighbourhood planning can give communities the power to develop a shared vision for their neighbourhood and influence the development of their local area. They are able to choose where they want new homes, shops or offices, have their say on what those new buildings should look like and what infrastructure should be provided, and grant planning permission for the new buildings they want to see go ahead.

Neighbourhood planning provides a powerful set of tools for local people to ensure that they get the right types of development for their community where the wishes of the neighbourhood are in broad agreement with the strategic needs and priorities of the wider local area.

The plan must address the development and use of land because it will become part of the statutory development plan once it has officially approved by the planning authority. A neighbourhood plan can set planning out more detailed policies than is possible in the local plan but it has to support the strategic development set out in the Local Plan, the London Plan and the National Planning Policy Framework.

A group or organisation must apply to the local planning authority to be designated as a neighbourhood and those making an application must show how they have sought to comply with the conditions for neighbourhood forum designation.

The forum must have a membership of at least 21 individuals who

• live in the neighbourhood
• or work there
• or are elected members for a local authority that includes all or part of the neighbourhood

The Herne Hill Forum has taken the lead in promoting the idea of a neighbourhood plan and held a very successful meeting on 27 January 2016, partly to agree a new constitution to allow it to apply for designation. With 150 attending, and some lively discussion, the willingness to get involved was clear. David Taylor, a long-standing Society member explained the benefits of such a plan. Then the meeting heard from the Highgate forum which has successfully steered their plan through all its stages.

To help deliver their vision, communities that draw up a neighbourhood plan and secure the consent of local people in a referendum will benefit from 25 percent of the revenues from the Community Infrastructure Levy arising from the development that takes place in their area. Herne Hill is more complicated than most areas, as it straddles two boroughs; and there are also adjoining areas which have or are applying for neighbourhood plans as well! Tulse Hill already has its designation and boundaries agreed, and Herne Hill Forum members have been active in negotiation with groups in Norwood, Loughborough Junction and Brixton in seeking to agree boundaries.

There have been ongoing discussions with both boroughs and by the time you read this, the Forum may have submitted its application for designation. After a period of formal consultation carried out by the local authorities, the process of drawing up the plan can proceed. There will be a range of consultations taking place during 2016: meetings, workshops on a range of topics and events. If you would like to learn more and get involved in helping drawing up the plans please see the Herne Hill Forum website.

David Taylor

 

North Dulwich and Denmark Hill Controlled Parking Zone Consultation

Southwark Council has previously consulted on the introduction of a controlled parking zone (CPZ) in the North Dulwich Triangle – most recently in 2009, when residents narrowly rejected the idea. Since then, parking stress, particularly for those on the school or shopping run, has increased, especially since Lambeth Council extended the CPZ of their side of Herne Hill. Following a large volume of requests, Southwark Council has agreed to consult again.

The area involved in the consultation and study is bounded by Herne Hill, Denmark Hill, the all-day South Camberwell (L) zone, Sainsbury’s, Greendale, the railway line through North Dulwich Station, and the existing Herne Hill (HH) CPZ. The results of the consultation will guide the definition of any new CPZ.

The area being investigated will be leafleted, and drop-in sessions are being held at the Herne Hill Methodist Church Hall on Half Moon Lane on Thursday 4 June in the evening, and Saturday 6 June in the afternoon. Responses can also be given online until 12 June.

The draft consultation findings and the Southwark officers’ recommendations will be presented to the Dulwich Community Council in September 2015.

Loughborough Junction – Higgs Triangle Development rejected by Lambeth

Although outside what could be considered as Herne Hill, the proposal for a major development  at the so-called Higgs Triangle at Loughborough Junction is very much on its borders and therefore of concern to Herne Hill residents. The scheme is for a major residential development, providing almost 150 flats (57 of which would be “affordable”) as well as office and light industrial use, in five blocks ranging between five and 10 storeys. The site is bounded by railway lines on two sides, with Herne Hill Road to the east and Coldharbour Lane to the north.

The scheme met with an unfavourable reception from local people. Opposition to it was organised by the Loughborough Junction Action Group and they had support from Dame Tessa Jowell MP and local Councillors. The principal concerns were that the scheme was misconceived, since it pre-empted Lambeth’s Masterplan for the Loughborough Junction area, that the housing density was too high (and could be even higher if office use was not taken up – as seems probable), that the consequences on local services and infrastructure had not been sufficiently considered and that the consultation process had been inadequate.

The Herne Hill Society was asked by the Loughborough Junction Action Group to support them in their opposition to the scheme. The Society has done so and, particularly thanks to the work of David Taylor, who heads the Society’s planning group, submitted detailed objections to Lambeth on the planning applications.

On 25 November 2014 the applications came before Lambeth’s Planning Committee at Lambeth Council and they were refused. The decision went against the recommendation of the planning officers whose independent report argued in favour of the development. It remains to be seen whether the developers will appeal.

The old stable block in Ruskin Park – a new future?

From the late 18th century onwards villas for London’s merchant and professional classes began to line Denmark Hill and Herne Hill. Away from the smoke and grime of the city one can imagine the attraction of what remained for some 100 years a semi-rural setting. One is reminded of the words in Gilbert & Sullivan’s Trial by Jury (1875) “Camberwell became a bower, Peckham an Arcadian vale”. 

Until the arrival of the railways in South East London in the 1860s horses were the means of transport for the owners of these villas when travelling to work in the City. And that is the origin of the stable block in Ruskin Park, the two-storey building close to the junction of Denmark Hill and Ferndene Road and dating from the first half of the 19th century. It belonged to the house at No. 172 Denmark Hill, though was closer to the neighbouring house at No.174.

The leases of these and other neighbouring houses with their extensive garden land came to an end in the first decade of the last century. The question then arose as to whether there would be the sort of denser housing development of the sort that characterises suburban London as we know it today. Fortunately, led by a local resident, Frank Trier, the idea of establishing a public park found wide support and funding from the London County Council. Nos. 172 and 174 and six other houses were demolished, but in their place Ruskin Place was laid out, opening to the public in 1907.

The stable block was retained for park maintenance purposes and male and female toilet blocks also provided, either added at that date or possibly adapted from older outbuildings linked to the stable block. The toilet blocks closed several years ago, and the stable block itself has, more recently, become disused, following local authority expenditure cuts and outsourcing of park maintenance.

The old stable block is locally listed by Lambeth and is an attractive building with distinct character, whose exterior retains all its essential historic features. It is a rare survivor in this part of London, a telling reminder of a lost world and definitely worth preserving. It is therefore encouraging that Heritage Lottery funding for a detailed appraisal of the building and its future has become available, the appraisal being carried out by architects Edwards Rensen. The Herne Hill Society recently researched the stable block’s history and has provided a report to the architects.

As part of the appraisal, there is to be an open consultation on the future of the stable block between 10.00am and 4.00pm on Sunday 18 May, at the Playground in Ruskin Park. And Friends of Ruskin Park are then holding a public meeting the following Tuesday, 20 May, at the Cambria pub, Kemerton Road, where the stable block’s future will be discussed. 

Milkwood Road again

What do you think of the state of the junction end of Milkwood Road?

In our view it is an absolute mess, from the entrance doors of Sainsbury's down to Pizza Express. For example:

• Rubbish bins often blocking or significantly narrowing the pavement
• Torn open, dumped rubbish sacks leaking rotting goods over the pavement
• Not enough room for wheelchairs to travel along the pavement
• Too narrow for mothers with buggies and / or children to pass
• Empty street-tree plots getting muddier by the week

All in all: dangerous, insanitary and unpleasant to look at - let alone walk past - as the smell is often bad too. This is in stark contrast to the other side of the road, which has been attractively redeveloped and is generally problem-free.

Whereas the Sainsbury's side is so revolting and difficult to navigate that many commuters are crossing over and the pavements are too narrow at busy times!

Surely this is currently the worst "grot spot" in Herne Hill? We need an approach that takes into account the needs of residents, shops, restaurants, commuters and all pedestrians.