Hackney denies TfL's claim that it backs "exemplar" gated community

Hackney have publically denied TfL's claim that its officers have described TfL amended plans for a new gated community in Dalston as of "exemplar design".

TfL withdrew its planning application last January and last week it issued an official brochure promoting an amended scheme . The brochure states: "We have since engaged again with officers to resolve these design matters and have revised the scheme accordingly to meet their wishes. Officers have now confirmed that the revised and substantially improved scheme can be supported as an exemplar design"

TfL describes the new design of the Western Curve's northern block now as 'sculptural' and which 'responds' to local character.

A Hackney Council spokesperson has responded to say: "Hackney Council planning officers have not described the design proposals for the Dalston Western Curve sites as 'exemplar'. Officers raised concerns with regards to the design quality of the initial planning application on this site and revised proposals addressing previous concerns have just been submitted. This application and the consultation period is ongoing and officers have yet to form a view on the revised application."

"Exemplar design" is an important word in the planning world - exceptional design is used to  argue for a departure from plannning policies. The Dalston Area Action Plan policy for TfL's northern site is for buildings of 4-6 storeys. TfL's design is for 6-7 storeys.

OPEN's solicitor has sent  a request to both Hackney and TfL requesting production of their record of the discussions held concerning the design of TfLs amended scheme.

TfL claim Hackney planners back its "exemplar" gated community

TfL reports that its amended scheme for a gated development on Dalston's Western Curve has been described as of "exemplar design" by Hackney's planners ie a model which Hackney would like to see copied or imitated. Previously its plans, TfL acknowledges, were described as "uninspiriring and repetitive".

TfL describes the Western Curve's northern block now as 'sculptural' and which 'responds' to local character.

TfL's amended plans follow the withdrawal of its plannning application last January, after criticism by the local community and Council plannners. The amended plans have removed the 8th storey ( except for the corner tower), and set back the 6th and 7th storeys, of the northern block on the corner of Bolyen Road and Kingsland High Street. TfL describes the reduced height as a "substantial concession" - although the Council and government approved Dalston Area Action Plan identifies 4-6 storeys only as suitable for the site.

The block on the southern site, extending north from Dalston Junction, will dominate the street scene and obscure views and light from Ashwin Street and the Reeves and Sons Printhouse building and Shiloh Church.

Other design changes include more variation to the frontages, upgrading cheaper to more expensive finishes, increased room heights to flats, more balconies etc.

From the outset TfL, a public landowner,  rejected OPEN Dalston's requests for public green space to be incorporated within the designs. It insists that all the public land would be enclosed as amenity space within its new private development in which some 90% of flats will be for sale.

OPEN Dalston's illustration of the potential for linking green spaces through Dalston above the Western Curve railway tunnels

We met TfL's bosses, the GLA, and put forward detailed evidence of need and designs to illustrate what would be possible. Providing green space is known to increase well-being. It also increases land values (see, for example, the High Line effect) but TfL say our plans would make their scheme "financially unviable" . TfL says that Hackney agrees that public green space would be "inappropriate", although the Council's official design brief for the sites refers to "encouraging" the provision of  open green space.

OPEN Dalston understands that TfL has now re-submitted its plannning application for the sites and we anticpiate  that Hackney's planners will recommend the scheme to the Council's Planning Committee. In the meantime we still await TfL's response to our proposals for greening other local TfL owned sites for which it presently has no development plans

Hackney's plastics legacy

Hackney's Lea valley industries were innovative. They discovered and manufactured plastics.The exploitation of this scientific legacy has had a global reach.


"Midway" - a film by Chris Jordan

Just recently a sperm whale died on a Spanish beach with 17kg of plastic in its stomach.

Photo of the River Lea - by the  2012 Olympic Site

"I remember that a wise friend of mine did usually say, 'That which is everybody's business is nobody's business.' "  Izaak Walton, Piscator, who fished the Lea in the 17th Century.  

In other words, it's everyones' problem but noone's responsibility.

UPDATE

JLT comments below that you can find out about solutions here:

Council grant development approval. Dalston playground land to be sold.

Last night Hackney's Planning Committee granted approval for a massive residential-led scheme on Martel Place/Dalston Lane - the last undeveloped site on Dalston's Eastern Curve - despite the Council having promised, following public consultation on its Dalston Area Action Plan (DAAP), that there would be a kids' public playground as a priority. A skateboard park had been flagged up.

Kids and parents attended the Town Hall in numbers to protest at the sell off of Council open green land on the site to the private developer but were only allowed five minutes to voice their many objections to the multi-million pound scheme. SAVE Britains Heritage also wrote in to object.

After the hearing one of the kids, Dex, said "It's disgusting. They said the playground must now wait to see if they'll build tower blocks on the shopping centre site. Still, we've now found a great new place for  skateboarding - on The Slab above Dalston junction station."

The Slab, which Hackney helped subsidise, was built by TfL for its buses at a cost of £63million but only one bus, the 488, uses it and there are only five of those an hour. "We can easily dodge the 488, so The Slab is fairly safe" said Dex "We just have to watch out for the police. They chuck us off when we skateboard there, and on the shopping centre car park, but there's nowhere else to go."

Council officers informed the Planning Committee that the playgound was always planned to go on a re-developed Kingsland Shopping Centre site however the site policies in the DAAP makes no mention of it there but expressly refers to the playground going on the Eastern Curve site. Martel Place is part of the 'Eastern Curve Character Area' in the DAAP.

The planning permission departs radically from the planning guidance for the site in terms of height, density, affordable housing and employment space. The value of the land Hackney is selling to the Martel Place developer will increase substantially if the planning permission is eventually upheld. Hackney's Mayor Pipe and the private developer will both be delighted by this windfall.

Because of the size of the scheme Hackney's planning permission will require approval by Boris' GLA. Objectors are entitled to make representations to the GLA

You can sign the dissenter's petition here

Hackney deny children's playground provision.

Hackney has denied that it ever intended to build the promised children's playground as part of the Martel Place development. Hackney owns open green space there which is to be sold to the major private developer which is seeking planning permission for the site.

The 5 -10 storey blocks proposed for Martel Place development at the junction with Dalston Lane leading to the Kingsland Shopping Centre's rear car park.

Following public consultation , the promised "active youth facility" ( for 12 year olds and above) was included in the Council's Dalston Area Action Plan (DAAP) which underwent government inspection last summer. A skateboard park was talked of. It's location would  be at the " far eastern end of the Eastern Curve", which would be renamed as Ritson Place, and it would be developed  as part of the Eastern Curve ( Sites CA5 which includes Martel Place).

All the other development sites on the Eastern Curve have since been built on with blocks of 8-14 storeys. Martel Place, on which Hackney owns the green open land,  is the only remaining undeveloped site on the Eastern Curve. 

Kingsland Shopping Centre car park which has since been lined with the blocks of 8 -14 storeys of Point One Appartments and Kinetica Tower

Although Hackney recognises the severe deficiency of kids play areas in Dalston, it has now informed us that it's "vision" is not to provide the playground as part of the redevelopment of the Eastern Curve sites at all. It says the playground will be provided as part of the redevelopment of the Kingsland Shopping Centre - but that could be years away in the future, if at all. By that time our "12 year old and above" kids will have grown up after more years of playing on the streets!

The redeveloped Martel Place site will comprise massive blocks containing 121 flats but only 15 (12%) will be for affordable rent and those, in a seperate block, appear to have no direct access to the "semi-private" open space within the development. Hackney's policy is to aim for 50% affordable housing in new developments, of which 60% would be for rent ie 36 affordable rental flats in this case..

Council  planners have taken "independent" advice from Hackney's Property Service Department which, in turn, is seeking to maximise the receipt from its land sale. That Department has advised that 15 affordable rental flats are the most that can be achieved to make the deal "financially viable" ie so the developer makes a 20% profit on investment. 

Although the plans depart radically from the Council's own DAAP guidelines for the site in terms of building height, housing density, priority employment uses and affordable housing, the Planning Department will be recommending approval of the scheme to the Planning Committee which will consider granting planning permission on Wednesday 6th March.  A very large number of objections from the community have been made to the scheme.

You can comment on the official plan here
You can sign the dissenter's petition here

(PS  Play Space is so lacking in Dalston that the authorities 'big idea' now is "Play Streets." Ed)

Hackney to sell off Dalston playground.

Public green land owned by the Council is to be sold as part of a major private development in Dalston. 120 flats, in 5 to 10 storey blocks, are to be built on land which had been earmarked as a priority by the Council for a public children's playground.

Artist's impression of the scheme from the Matalan/Sainsbury's car park which has since been lined with 8 - 14 storey towers

The recently approved Dalston Area Action Plan (DAAP) specified that the public playground would be specially landscaped and designed as an "active youth space" for kids of twelve years and over. But there's no sign of that in the development scheme proposed. The GLA London Planners have even suggested that a designated 'semi-private courtyard' should be entirely privatised to give residents in the flats "a sense of ownership". The development will be 87% privately owned. 

Artist's impression from Dalston Lane railway bridge with blocks rising from five to ten stories.

We are told that the Council's Planning Department has already decided  to recommend the scheme although it departs radically from its own DAAP guidelines for the site in terms of building height, housing density, priority employment uses and affordable housing.

The development land's value will increase very significantly if it all goes according to the landowner's plan. The Council will be quids in too if it grants planning permission because it also owns part of the land ! In that case, sadly, Dalston kids would lose out. ( Not to mention the 60 odd artist's who will lose their affordable studios. Ed)

You can comment on the official plan here
You can sign the dissenter's petition here

(PS  Play Space is so lacking in Dalston that the authorities 'big idea' now is "Play Streets." Ed)

Linking Dalston's green spaces

On 11 February OPEN Dalston attended a meeting with the GLA's  Deputy Mayor for Transport and senior commercial  development officers of Transport for London. At the meeting we presented some alternative proposals to the Western Curve gated community for which TfL had applied to Hackney for planning permission (and which it has since withdrawn). You can read a summary of one of our proposals, "Linking Dalston's green spaces".

TfL, and its development partners Taylor Wimpey, had come to Dalston with a "pre-formed" plan and it responded to public consultation with cosmetic changes only. Our objections to TfL's plan are not confined to the lack of green spaces and improvements to 'public realm'. We also consider that the scheme's exclusive 'gated community', the lack of adequate affordable and family housing, and the damage to local heritage and character require changes.

This drawing illustrates the potential for a green route through Dalston town centre with little impact on TfLs current development proposals

In our "Linking Dalston's green spaces" presentation you will find an analysis of Dalston's development context, a detailed evidence base, our objections to TfLs scheme and some innovative ideas for greening over TfL's Overground railway tunnels.





TfL have agreed to consider and evaluate our proposals and a further meeting with them is being arranged.

We invite you to comment on "Linking Dalston's green spaces" on this blog or by sending an email to info@opendalston.net