TfL withdraw plans for private gated community in Dalston

TfL has withdrawn its plannning application to build a private gated community in Dalston town centre. TfL's plans would have resulted in the almost entire enclosure of public railway land, above the East London line extension from Dalston Junction to Highbury and Islington, know as the Western Curve sites. 90% of the residential development would have comprised flats for private sale and all available green and amenity space would have been within the development from which the public would have been excluded.

TfLs proposed 8-storey block on 3-4 storey Kingsland High street on the northern part of the Western Curve site

OPEN Dalston has been in discussion with TfL's development partners, Taylor Wimpey, since April 2012 urging them to make provision for public green spaces as part of the scheme but TfL responded  that there was no room on its sites for any small public green spaces.

OPEN Dalston has been invited to discuss the scheme with London's Mayor, Boris Johnson, on 11 February when TfL's Head of Property is expected to be present. Our proposals will be published here in advance of that meeting and will include plans for new pedestrian routes and green "stepping stones" through the town centre and using modern technology to capture wasted heat from the railway tunnels to warm greenhouses above them.

TfL's controversial scheme has attracted considerable publicity included articles in the Evening Standard, Hackney Citizen and this from our local Hackney Gazette  

Hackney Council is required to resolve planning applications within particular timescales set by central government. We requested that TfL agree to defer its application until after it's boss, London's Mayor Boris Johnson, had considered OPEN Dalston's proposals. Hackney is understood to also have serious concerns about the design of TfL's scheme. This week TfL has written to Hackney to request that its application be withrawn and this has now been formally recorded on Hackney website.