tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32734091890226056432024-03-19T12:00:55.563+00:00Deptford Is...DEPTFORD IS...http://www.blogger.com/profile/15461323445196003952noreply@blogger.comBlogger115125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3273409189022605643.post-9199068468662878682018-01-27T22:19:00.000+00:002018-01-28T12:56:58.804+00:00Where are we now?This site has not been maintained since June 2014, but hopefully the posts here serve as a useful archive for anyone wishing to know more about the redevelopment of Convoys Wharf.<br />
<br />
<i>Deptford Is</i> concentrated on preserving the historical legacy of the former Deptford Royal Dockyard. With no chance of taming the new overseas owners' greed through opposition to an invasion of luxury towers, <i>Deptford Is</i> worked to emphasise the immense historical importance of a site that was already buried under concrete.<br />
<br />
The developer was required to carry out the largest ever archaeological survey of a UK dockyard as part of pre-planning, and it revealed that this legacy could not be underestimated, as the published findings of the <a href="https://www.mola.org.uk/deptford-royal-dockyard-and-manor-sayes-court-london-excavations-2000%E2%80%9312" target="_blank"><b>Museum of London</b></a> revealed in late 2017. The astounding results of these investigations were known in 2014, so much so that the <a href="http://deptfordis.blogspot.co.uk/2013/10/the-world-monument-fund-listing.html" target="_blank">World Monuments Fund put the dockyard and Sayes Court Garden on their 'Watch List'</a>.<br />
<br />
Yet planning permission was consequently granted to bury it all 'in situ' under three towers of up to 48 storeys and average building heights of 12 storeys. Luckily, two projects promoted by <i>Deptford Is</i> to preserve some of the dockyard's heritage became part of the planning conditions, and they have continued since then to develop their long term plans for a presence on the site. For up-to-date information on <b>The Lenox Project</b> and <b>Sayes Court</b>, go to <a href="http://www.buildthelenox.org/"><b>www.buildthelenox.org</b></a>, and <a href="http://www.sayescourt.org.uk/"><b>www.sayescourt.org.uk</b></a>.<br />
<br />
Since 2014, in order to fulfil their obligations within the permitted three years of obtaining outline permission, <b>Hutchison Whampoa</b> (now <b>CK Property Holdings</b>) have worked towards preparing the site for access to transport and utilities, but much of it is now completely overgrown. In 2017, they ran a public consultation on their detailed plans for building one single plot (out of eight) as a small part of the first of three phases.<br />
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At the time of writing, amidst reports that overseas investors have pulled out of London property investment because of fears over Brexit, the plans for this comparatively small plot have yet to be submitted to Lewisham Planning. The proposals do not contain any social housing.<br />
<br />
<b>Voice 4 Deptford</b> has since been set up (following on from the work started by Convoys Wharf Community Group in 2014) to represent local people affected by the redevelopment and campaign for social housing on the site. To find out more, sign up for news at <a href="http://www.pepys.community/voice4deptford/" style="font-weight: bold;">www.pepys.community/voice4deptford/</a>.<br />
<br />DEPTFORD IS...http://www.blogger.com/profile/15461323445196003952noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3273409189022605643.post-86959348006578253542014-06-20T14:08:00.002+01:002014-06-20T14:08:56.531+01:00Have your say on how £50m is spent! Wed 25th JuneConvoys Wharf Community Group have organised a meeting for locals to have a say in how the Section 106 monies to be awarded to Lewisham Council by the developer of Convoys Wharf might be spent.<br />
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<b>Wednesday 25 June • 7.30 – 9.30pm • Deptford Lounge</b><br />
<br />
Everyone welcome! <br />
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The group has been set up by Pepys Community Forum and the Department of Social, Therapeutic and Community Studies at Goldsmiths College.<br />
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<br />DEPTFORD IS...http://www.blogger.com/profile/15461323445196003952noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3273409189022605643.post-51764737446275231072014-05-02T14:14:00.001+01:002014-05-02T14:14:10.054+01:00New pollution survey in South East LondonSome members of Deptford Is... took part in a Citizen Science air pollution survey in January and February, along with other local residents and supporters of the <a href="http://www.dontdumpondeptfordsheart.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Don't Dump On Deptford's Heart</a> campaign. Unfortunately it took two months for the lab to process the results, so we didn't get them back in time to support the oral evidence provided by objectors at the Convoys Wharf hearing at City Hall on March 31st. <br />
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Under DEFRA guidelines and with assistance from the Network for Clean Air, we put up diffusion tubes all over Deptford to measure the levels of nitrogen dioxide in the air. At the same time, the No to Silvertown Tunnel campaign put up tubes up across Greenwich borough and parts of Lewisham. The residents both paid for and conducted the survey with additional funding from local charity Deptford First via Joan Ruddock MP.<br />
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We have now published the results and the figures are horrifying. Almost every site we monitored is over the <b>EU legal limit of</b> <b>40µg/m³</b>. Many were double the legal limit.<br />
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<br />
With so much construction due to take place in the next few years, pollution levels are set to soar and threaten the health of all who live, work and study here. Hundreds more construction vehicles will be using the A200, Deptford Church Street and the A2. But developers in Deptford are in a unique position to use the river to transport spoil and materials, and must be encouraged to do so at all costs. <br />
<br />
NO2 levels on the A200 (Creek Road and Evelyn Street) were as high as 74µg/m³. At Deptford Park School the reading was 68µg/m³. The roads that will be used by Convoys construction vehicles are already highly polluted (55µg/m³ at Grove Street and 40µg/m³ at New King Street). The developer must be forced to use the river and do everything within their power to avoid creating even more pollution. Other new construction projects on Evelyn Street and on the Southwark borders should be taken into consideration.<br />
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The A2 in Deptford is even worse, with readings of 95, 98 and 110µg/m³ – well over twice the legal limit! Deptford Church Street had readings as high has 84µg/m³ where it meets the A2. If the Thames Tunnel proposal on Deptford Church St goes ahead, the planned partial road closure will cause gridlock. The proposals also include 17,400 lorry movements on Deptford Church Street over three years. Ironically, at Thames Water's originally preferred site by the river at Glashier Street, the pollution level was very low (only 14µg/m³).<br />
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Developers on Creekside must be made to use Deptford Creek rather than increase pollution on Creekside and Deptford Church Street. Proposals for 90 HGV movements a day along Creekside at one development will endanger the lives of local residents, and these vehicles will exit Creekside onto Deptford Church Street where the reading was 62µg/m³. <br />
<br />
In due course, we plan to combine these figures with local authority data to get a fuller picture of air pollution across the area. The results have also been passed to Lewisham Planners who are in continuing discussions with the GLA and Hutchison Whampoa. The GLA must be made aware of the horrific cummulative impact of all the
construction work going on in Deptford to inform their conversations
with the developer.<br />
<br />
<b>You can see the <a href="https://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=200240611801792332000.0004f7bc730aa80ba49a2&msa=0&ll=51.479886,0.055618&spn=0.107978,0.264187&dg=feature" target="_blank">Deptford results here. </a> </b><br />
<b>The Greenwich & Lewisham results are <a href="https://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=200240611801792332000.0004f7bc6c774c0b33e2d&msa=0&ll=51.479886,0.055618&spn=0.107978,0.264187&dg=feature" target="_blank">here.</a> </b><br />
<b>Both are combined in a map on the <a href="http://www.silvertowntunnel.co.uk/our-study/2014-silvertown-tunnel-pollution-study-results/" target="_blank">No to Silvertown website</a>.</b><br />
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The No to Silvertown campaigners believe that the proposed Silvertown
Tunnel will make the problems caused by the Blackwall Tunnel worse
rather than better. TfL has predicted a 20% increase in traffic using
the tunnel approaches if the tunnel is built, while the Mayor of London
has said the capacity will be doubled. Although Deptford's traffic
problems are presently exacerbated by whatever goes wrong on the A102,
No to Silvertown argue that increasing capacity there can only make
matters worse for us. DEPTFORD IS...http://www.blogger.com/profile/15461323445196003952noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3273409189022605643.post-34925675984283393882014-04-17T18:33:00.001+01:002014-04-17T18:33:01.753+01:0021 years of urban change in Deptford<span style="color: #134f5c;"><b>Has the Tide Turned? 'Regeneration' Then and Now</b></span><br /><b>Friday 25th April, 3.30–8pm, Deptford Town Hall Council Chamber</b><br /><br />It is almost 21 years since Deptford's most popular history book "Turning The Tide – A History of Everyday Deptford" was published, and this event hopes to explore what has happened in the intervening two decades.<br /><br />The Centre for Urban and Community Research (CUCR) at Goldsmiths College would like to invite local activists, local organisations, academics, residents, and government officials to this free event where you can share stories of the “regeneration” of Deptford.<br /><br />The publication coincided with the start of CUCR’s evaluation of the Deptford City Challenge programme which began the now seemingly endless initiatives to 'regenerate' our town (often with negligible benefits for the residents and increasing profits for developers).<br /><br />The aim is to discuss the recent changes in Deptford, but also to think about the possible futures for the area. The programme includes a seminar on "the changing face of regeneration in London" with several speakers as well as Turning the Tide author Jess Steele (3.30-5.30pm); screenings, sound interventions & "creative responses" + refreshments (5.30-6pm); followed by workshops on subjects such as Arts & Culture, Housing, DIY Deptford and Convoys Wharf (6-8pm).<br /><br />For more information and to register to take part, please <b><a href="http://www.gold.ac.uk/cucr/20years/hasthetideturned/" target="_blank">click here</a></b>.<br />
<br />DEPTFORD IS...http://www.blogger.com/profile/15461323445196003952noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3273409189022605643.post-16029571467070222372014-04-02T21:10:00.002+01:002014-04-02T21:18:27.325+01:00Mayor passes application – with conditions<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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At City Hall on Monday 31st March, the Mayor of London passed the outline planning application for Convoys Wharf after what he called <i>"a marathon session but very, very interesting and educational"</i>. It had been hoped he might give more time over the next few days to deliberate the decision, allowing Lewisham Council the opportunity to negotiate better terms, but he returned after half an hour to deliver his
judgement in favour of the applicant. He did, however, add two
conditions that he thought would assist the two community heritage
projects, which he said <i>"have a great deal of merit and are both
intrinsically attractive"</i>.<br />
<br />
Although the developer had
only last Friday evening offered the Lenox Project £20k for a
feasibility study into the uses of the Olympia building and the
Protected Wharf with the proviso that <i>both</i> might be ruled out, one of the Mayor
of London's conditions is for a feasibility study with the proviso <i>"that there should be
an agreement on the part of the developer <b>to contribute to whichever of
these options is the most feasible</b>"</i>. <br />
<br />
The other condition was for the GLA, Lewisham Council and the developers <i>"to look at the space in the
existing park (the council-owned Sayes Court Garden in Grove St) and the
wider development, to ensure that there is a viable and deliverable
project"</i>. So neither project is yet home and dry, but both appear to have the support of the Mayor of London.<br />
<br />
Further amendments sought by Lewisham were not forthcoming. <br />
<br />
<span style="color: #134f5c;">A GLA webcast of the hearing can be viewed <a href="https://www.london.gov.uk/webcasts/36450/asx" target="_blank">here</a> <i>(Mac users may have to download and install an extra bit of software <a href="http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/windows-media-components-quicktime" target="_blank">here</a> first)</i>.
Objector's representations can be found roughly a third of the way
through, followed by questions from Boris about halfway through. There
is then an intermission followed by Boris's decision at the end. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c;"><span style="color: #134f5c;"><span style="color: black;">Below is a report on the hearing.</span></span><b> </b></span><br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c;"><b>THE OBJECTORS:</b></span><br />
<br />
<b>Lewisham Council</b><br />
Sir Steve Bullock said, "if we get it wrong now, we won't have the opportunity again in our lifetime." He
argued that the heights around the Olympia building "should be reduced,
their siting changed to give it a generous and respectful setting" and
noted with regard to Sayes Court Garden and the Lenox Project that "the
current proposals do not...provide either the space needed to deliver
them or a commitment to ensure that they create an enduring legacy". He
said "the risk remains that these community projects will be shut out
and the energy and enthusiasm they have generated will be lost". He
reiterated the council's concern that TfL's current assessment lacked
any detailed traffic modelling, and welcomed the addition of a
'financial review mechanism' (negotiated by Lewisham) that will allow
the securing of additional affordable housing as the scheme's
'viability' (profit for the developer) improves. He urged Boris "to take
just a little more time to ensure that these issues can be addressed
and resolved satisfactorily".<br />
<br />
<b>Pepys Community Forum</b><br />
Malcolm
Cadman began by noting that Convoys had historically been a big local
employment site but would not now offer any real employment
opportunities. The scheme was aimed at foreign investors and there was
little affordable housing. The proposed towers were too tall and
atypical of the area. He drew attention to the petition published the
previous day in The Observer (<a href="http://www.theguardian.com/cities/2014/mar/29/london-skyline-statement-200-towers-letter-full-text" target="_blank">London skyline statement</a>:
200 towers threaten to destroy city's character) and suggested that the
density of the development would make Deptford "super dense".<br />
<br />
<b>Pepys Tenants Action Group</b> <br />
Dave
Fleming noted the poor consultation with the community on this scheme
and how the developer's had failed to engage. He pleaded for less
density, especially in light of the additional developments going up in
the area.<br />
<br />
<b>People Before Profit</b><br />
Ray
Woolford asked that the affordable housing provision be protected so
that it doesn't in future end up in the hands of buy-to-let landlords.
He requested that the GLA begin Air Quality Monitoring of the area
immediately, to be continued throughout the 13 year construction period,
and said "London's health must be put before off-shore profit". He
wanted all local residents, many of whom are in fuel poverty, to also
benefit from the cheaper SELCHP waste transfer energy that the
development will use. He wants the applicant to address Lewisham's 55%
youth employment and make sure jobs go to real local residents rather
than cheap foreign labour getting moved onto the site to live in sheds
under the guise of living locally, as happened with the Olympia Park
construction.<br />
<br />
<b>Local resident on Transport</b><br />
Echoing
Lewisham Council's concerns, Helena Russell said the applicant's
research had been "woefully inadequate". Their transport assessment used
"outdated information", lacked "robustness", and risked creating a
"perfect storm" for our local transport network. Car parking provision
is well above that which is acceptable for other developments, the
Public Transport Accessibility Levels (PTAL) were poor, hard to improve
and inadequately addressed. New residents will resort to driving,
creating extra traffic that will undermine bus services – immediate and
robust analysis of the local highways should be given the highest
priority. Additional factors include no firm commitment to using the
river for construction materials, future changes to the Greenwich line train service, and the Mayor's proposed Super Cycle Highway on Evelyn Street. <br />
<br />
<b>The Lenox Project CIC</b><br />
Julian
Kingston drew attention to the Great Basin in front of the Olympia
building, one of the many buried heritage assets, which he described as
"potentially the one remaining dynamic element in front of a static
landscape". The architects place the Olympia building at the heart of
the development, but the "future uses proposed would not offer a
meaningful link to the river, nor engage and educate the local
community, nor attract tourism and offer a legacy". The Lenox Project
would provide a legacy for the heritage assets, of craftsmanship and
training, and for historic shipbuilding. As "living history" the project
would draw in visitors to use the retail and restaurants the applicant
proposes to build. To encourage shipbuilding, John Evelyn entrusted his
land to the Admiralty on condition that a keel should always lie in a
slip. The Lenox should be that keel.<br />
<br />
<b>Sayes Court Garden CIC</b><br />
Nic
Durston (National Trust) described how the National Trust had formed
from their founders attempts to save Sayes Court Garden. The NT fully supports their proposals and requests for flexibility to allow their ambitious plans to be realised. As one of the directors of the community interest project, Bob Bagley
reported how their work with the NT, the Eden Project and Harvard
University had demonstrated the need for a Centre of Horticulture here
"to help us prepare and adapt to the new challenges our city faces in
the 21st century". Research conducted by the NT showed that one hectare
was required, but the applicant had only been able to offer half of
this. The project had put forward a solution which would not impact on
the parameters of the masterplan which they hoped the applicant could be
flexible enough to adopt.<br />
<br />
<b>Dame Joan Ruddock, MP for Deptford</b><br />
Dame
Joan spoke in support of the two community projects and said that years
of expertise had gone into designing them, and their presentations
today set out what they need to make them a reality. Without them, the
Mayor would be asked to approve a development that would obscure most
of the heritage of this site forever. They were not offering "dusty
static museums, but living enterprises that honour the past whilst
embracing the future".<br />
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<br />
<span style="color: #134f5c;"><b>SUPPORTERS: </b></span><br />
<br />
A representative from the developer's team then spoke on behalf of the applicant Hutchison Whampoa. No one else spoke in support.<br />
<br />
<span style="color: #134f5c;"><b>MAYOR'S QUESTIONS:</b></span><br />
<br />
<b>Housing</b><br />
<br />
Boris also acknowledged Londoners' fears that
such schemes, which cause such huge disruption to locals whilst being
built, should be to the advantage of Londoners. Who would the homes be
aimed at and marketed to? The applicant replied they'd be marketed in
the normal way – to Londoners, (and tellingly), <i>"the same as elsewhere"</i>. They are working
with London & Quadrant to deliver the affordable housing, but <b>"they
aren't 100% signed up yet"</b>. There is an agreement to use the council's
affordability criteria. Sir Steve Bullock explained that if the rental is at 80%
the applicant would offer more units, "but that wouldn't help us in
terms of the housing need in the borough. With a smaller number, we will
have genuinely affordable rents. That doesn't mean that we're happy
with the total number. That's why we've asked for a review mechanism."
Boris agreed that it would be "absolutely crazy not to come back and
have another bite of this". <br />
<br />
Johnson noted that there were quite a lot of objections to the "design
and massing and height" but the council had not specifically objected on
those grounds. Steve Bullock said they were more concerned at this time about
reducing heights around the Olympia building. (Lewisham had already negotiated lowering heights on the outskirts of the development).<br />
<br />
Later in his summing up, Johnson said, "It's obviously a scheme that's been a very long time in gestation, 13 years nothing much has been happening on that site, you've got a huge housing shortage in London, there's a real crying need to get development done, this has the prospect of three and a half thousand homes and 1500 jobs and I listened very carefully to the representations that were made to me about the height impact, about the architecture, and I listened, obviously, with particular attention to the views of the council and Sir Steve who I very much respect, and clearly <i>I didn't hear passionate objections against the height</i>…certainly not against the principle of development – that is supported, and indeed the quotient of affordable housing was thought by the council to be broadly acceptable in view of the other constraints that the site faces".<br />
<br />
<b>Jobs</b><br />
<br />
Boris noted the objection that the jobs created "wouldn't be the right sort of jobs" which wouldn't go to local people. The applicant replied that it wasn't going to be a major office location, but there would be creative industries, reduced rents for start-ups, plus service industry jobs in the shops, restaurants and hotel. Boris suggested that the Lenox Project would "bring in lots of people". He possibly meant in the form of skilled jobs, but the applicant took this to mean 'visitors' and replied, "That's absolutely right...and we have a strategy for the Olympia Building which is to use the building much more diversely than for the Lenox". There were heckles of "Shops!" from the gallery. The applicant went on, "it's built on the Spitalfields/Covent Garden type model where we can have lots of ad hoc events, destination activites, some cultural facilities...rather than a single use that the Lenox is". There were heckles of "No, it's not!" from the gallery. And "shops!"<br />
<br />
<b>Social Cohesion</b><br />
<br />
Boris asked Lewisham Mayor Steve Bullock what he had meant by 'social cohesion'. Sir Steve pointed out that prior to the current ownership, a larger amount of Section 106 monies had been suggested and Lewisham would like to return to that figure. The risk was that the development would be an 'enclave' and more money would enable the council to support a wider range of programmes that would alleviate this. <b>A proper pro-rata amount would be £2m towards a 'community trust' that could be endowed to local projects, but the offer from the applicant was for only £0.25m.</b><br />
<br />
They also wanted a greater contribution towards ensuring jobs went to local people, and the developer was disputing additional payments towards secondary school education. Lewisham's Head Planner John Miller said, "a certain sum is promised but the rest is dependent on 'viability'. Our view is that we currently have a primary school crisis and that will turn into a secondary school crisis, so that money should be assured".<br />
<br />
Boris responded, "So you're down on the cohesion fund? Is this where negotiations have faltered? Have you squeezed this lemon dry?" John Miller that they were grateful that the GLA officers had speeded things up, but "we just think there's a little bit more to go". Boris replied, "Right, what about now?". Miller said, "that's fine if you'd like to agree those payments that would be excellent". Boris then replied "Oh I don't think I'm allowed to do that actually. I've been told I can't, regrettably".<br />
<br />
<b>Transport</b><br />
<br />
Boris had noted: "loss of PTAL, disruption during building – moving vehicles, how much by river? car parking? Too many cars?". He deferred to one of his planners, who agreed "The offer's not that great." But he said there were three ways they could improve on it – with a new route for the existing bus service, a pedestian route to train services and a new pier for river services. He thought it was sufficient. £4m was allocated to local highway improvements. "We're not there now on the modelling but we've got an agreement to work on that". Parking levels are in accordance with the London Plan.<br />
<br />
Boris asked again about moving things by river and whether that was 'conditioned in' to which the answer was, "We'll be pressing the applicant to maximise use of the river." Boris brought up Air Quality Monitoring, and the GLA planner agreed this was also factored into the Section 106.<br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c;"><i>(to be continued...)</i></span><br />
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<br />DEPTFORD IS...http://www.blogger.com/profile/15461323445196003952noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3273409189022605643.post-60347086682541654942014-03-23T03:18:00.002+00:002014-03-24T17:06:37.304+00:00Can the Mayor of London make the right decision?<span style="color: #134f5c;"><b>Update:</b> 24th March 2014: The GLA's 'Representation Hearing Report' is published and can be read and downloaded <b><a href="https://www.london.gov.uk/sites/default/files/Convoys%20Wharf%20Representation%20Hearing%20Report.pdf" target="_blank">here</a></b>.</span><br />
<br />
The Mayor of London has announced that the representation hearing for the planning application to redevelop the former Deptford Royal Dockyard at Convoys Wharf will take place on <b>31st March at 4pm at City Hall</b>. At the hearing there will be a 15 minute period for supporters and objectors to restate their case for and against the planning application in front of the mayor himself. Not long then!<br />
<br />
The Mayor has five days from the 31st March to announce his decision if he does not pronounce at the end of this hearing.<br />
<br />
Previous to this, Hutchison Whampoa have recently submitted <b><a href="http://www.london.gov.uk/priorities/planning/public-hearings/convoys-wharf" target="_blank">some very minor revisions</a> </b>to
its masterplan and the GLA invited comments on them, the deadline for which was 20th March (last Thursday). <i>Only two working day later</i>, on 24th March (this Monday), the GLA officers responsible for assessing the application will publish their report into the application, which will include a recommendation to the Mayor. <br />
<br />
The consultation on the revisions was the first invitation from the GLA for those affected by the development to comment. They did not, in other words, invite comments on the application in general, since they are already taking into account the comments received by Lewisham Council back in May-July 2013 after the application was first submitted to them in April.<br />
<br />
Perhaps the exceedingly short period between the GLA's deadline for receiving comments on the revisions and publishing their recommendations to the Mayor reflects the generally held opinion that ANY revisions to this application will be welcomed by all concerned.<br />
<br />
It seems very unlikely that the Mayor will go against the GLA
officers' advice unless he wants to make a particular political point (which he could and should do since almost everything about this application goes against the policies of the London Plan).
Based on the correspondence we have read, and a couple of meetings that
local projects Build The Lenox and Sayes Court Garden have been present
at, we believe that the GLA intends to recommend that the mayor approve
the scheme – despite the fact that <i>English Heritage have still to publish a report on the applicant's limited archaeological findings.</i><br />
<br />
<a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B8OEBkJWwcGgcUlaM2dETFdJdTg/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">Download this local objection</a>
that comprehensively reiterates all the reasons why this scheme cannot be allowed to proceed in its present form. It includes points raised by statutory
bodies such as English Heritage and the Council for British Archaeology and is informed by Lewisham's planning team, and quotes specific references to the Mayor's own London Plan policies. It
outlines just how much of his own vision the Mayor will be ignoring by
passing this application.<b> </b><br />
<br />
Read on below our response to the minor revisions and the Mayor's 'call-in' process.<br />
<br />
<span style="color: #134f5c;"><b>The revisions</b></span><br />
<br />
Of course we welcome the
revisions, but they are exceedingly minor considering the size of the scheme. (Let's not forget the applicant, Li Ka Shing, is the <a href="http://www.forbes.com/billionaires/list/#tab:overall" target="_blank"><strike>8th</strike> 20th richest billionaire in the world</a>).<br />
<br />
<b>Lewisham Council</b>, having rejected the application but also being a statutory consultant on it in the GLA's hands, seem to have been relatively successful in challenging the developer's notion of 'viability' that allows for a little bit more affordable housing. But it in no way represents a return to the 35% (or possibly more) that would have informed their agreement with the developer that goes back to 2006, to build "up to 3500" units which would have allowed for 1,000 new affordable homes in north Deptford. <br />
<br />
The <b>Sayes Court Garden project</b> has managed to get the proposed school (known as 'Plot 17' that was planned to be built over the footprint of John Evelyn's gardens) incorporated into the adjacent residential block (Plot 16), but as yet there is no offer in writing for Sayes Court Garden CIC, and no agreement to let them build their Centre of Urban Horticulture that would make sense of their entire project. An offer of sorts has only just been made by the applicant to <b>the Lenox Project</b> (for a place on the site that is unworkable) just two days before the GLA report is to be published.<br />
<br />
Building heights have been lowered by just one floor at the eastern border of the site that overlooks the Master Shipwright's House (which will become a public building in the future), but there is absolutely no concession to reducing heights elsewhere. In fact, this reduction in heights will mean an increase elsewhere.There are no changes to the heights of buildings in front of the Olympia. English Heritage are totally infuriated that the view of the Olympia building remains obscured from the river and overshadowed by tall buildings.<br />
<br />
Lewisham have been successful in attempting at this stage of the application to build in some flexibility to the 'parameter plans' for the three tallest buildings on the site that would have otherwise have been set in stone. Lewisham wanted a lot more than this (<a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B8OEBkJWwcGgbXNCVFVyRXdZY0E/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">read their report here</a>). They were particularly concerned about the issues of over capacity on the road and public transport networks that are still to be addressed. <br />
<br />
The
fact is, hardly anything in this application can be improved unless the
developer's insistence on 3,500 flats is sensibly and comprehensively
reduced. Since the only reason for this development is as a financial vehicle to make money for investors (foreign or otherwise), there can be little hope of Coalition soundbites about Localism having any basis in reality.<br />
<br />
<span style="color: #134f5c;"><b>The planning process</b></span><br />
<br />
The Mayor called in the planning application before Lewisham had made a decision on it. His decision on Convoys will set a precedent for the other schemes he has called in since then, and will also have implications for other sensitive redevelopments in London. The London Assembly has recently questioned the Mayor about his stripping of London boroughs' right to make planning decisions by using his power to 'call-in' large planning applications. He has already called-in five schemes in the past year. In many cases, Johnson has been 'calling-in' applications before the local authority in question has even had a chance to examine them. <br />
<br />
Darren Johnson, Chair of the London Assembly, said, <i>"The recent acceleration in the number and speed with which the Mayor is taking over planning decisions from boroughs...puts developers and investors before local democracy"</i>. The Assembly's motion listed 11 applications – including Convoys Wharf – and said that on many decisions, the Mayor has ignored legitimate borough concerns about issues such as inappropriate density and very low targets for affordable housing. <br />
<br />
The Mayor's call-in essentially puts the decision-making power in the hands of one person, which we feel is incredibly undemocratic and inappropriate for a project of such magnitude and significance. It undermines the government's argument for Localism, and takes the decision-making away from local people.<br />
<br />
Not only that, one of the things that has become clear to us during the last few months is that the GLA planning department is not equipped to handle this sort of decision-making. Usually the mayor's planners simply comment on planning applications which are being handled by local authorities. They are rarely called upon to make decisions, particular on schemes of such magnitude, and as a result they appear to be under-resourced and unclear about the process. <br />
<br />
We also question whether the procedure is fit for purpose. Since the call-in, only minor revisions have been made (which the developer claimed as 'significant concessions') for which there were only three weeks to comment on. The planners cannot possibly have read and digested any additional submissions, let alone incorporate them into the report they intend to publish within two days of that deadline closing, and the hearing will be held (and the decision made) a week after the report is published. Objectors will have just seven days in which to read the report, digest
its implications, and formulate responses before the hearing. This seems to be indecently hasty.<br />
<br />
<br />DEPTFORD IS...http://www.blogger.com/profile/15461323445196003952noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3273409189022605643.post-91447878559755507332014-03-22T21:34:00.000+00:002014-03-22T21:48:58.291+00:00Top John Evelyn scholar backs Sayes Court Garden project<span style="color: #134f5c;"><b>Mark Laird</b> is Senior Lecturer in the History of Landscape Architecture at Harvard University and the foremost authority on <b>John Evelyn</b>. He has recently written to the Mayor of London from Harvard Design School with respect to the Convoys Wharf application and in support of the proposals from Sayes Court Garden CIC:</span><br />
<br />
"It is impossible to overstate the significance of Sayes Court and the history of John Evelyn's life and work at the site that is under threat of irreversible development. Over the past twenty years, I have written three scholarly articles on Evelyn at Sayes Court. My forthcoming book, <i>A Natural History of English Gardening</i> (Yales University Press, Spring 2015) will open with a chapter on his significance as horticultural and technological innovator and as environmental policy maker. His <i>Fumifugium</i> (1661), <i>Sylva</i> (1664) and <i>Acetari</i>a (1699) laid the groundwork for a sustainable London of the 21st century – clear air, tree canopy, and food in the city.<br />
<br />
"The Greater London Authority has shown leadership through policy documents (from <i>London Biodiversity Action Plan</i> and <i>East London Green Grid Plan</i> to the March 2012 report, <i>London World Heritage Sites – Guidance on Settings</i>). These documents are in line with the new UNESCO Recommendation on Historic Urban Landscape (HUL, November 2011), which seeks to integrate 'policies and practices of conservation in the built environment into the wider goals of urban development'. In the Foreword to the March 2012 GLA document, <b>Boris Johnson reiterates the importance of London's built and natural heritage in benefiting 'our economy, culture and quality of life'. Sayes Court is the test case for his claim: 'How we manage this dynamic juxtaposition in ways that respect the past, while welcoming the future, will be a mark of our success in maintaining London as a really world class city'</b>.<br />
<br />
"The arguments in the 'Sayes Court Garden Programme and Analysis' report (February 2014) – and especially the modifications to P16 proposed in the 26 February 2014 statement – are built on very solid foundations. As you are aware, the <a href="http://www.sayescourtgarden.org.uk/" target="_blank">Sayes Court Garden website</a> features my own reconstructions of Evelyns's parterre and grove, which, until the better winter of 1683/4, lay immediately adjacent to his manor house. The archeaological site plan of Stuart Structures may look insignificant, yet the trace of the garden wall on the west side of the important vestiges of the manor house and the trace of the dockyard perimeter wall on the east side are absolutely critical to what I have reconstructed. The proposed P16 block would forever destroy and cover over these traces and vestiges and obliterate the core of Sayes Court – the manor house that was the intellectual home of Evelyn's environmental vision.<br />
<br />
"<b>Creating, by the modifications to P16, a new Centre for Urban Horticulture on the archaeological site of the manor house is precisely the accommodation of the old within the new that the Mayor sees as a measure of success and that UNESCO would deem a model for Historic Urban Landscape.</b> The Centre would join other models of 'best practice' <a href="http://whc.unesco.org/en/news/1026/" target="_blank">from around the world</a>. Using the Evelyn cabinet of curiosity as a starting point for a modular and flexible layout of the garden spaces would unify the geometries of the blocks with the geometries of urban horticulture and forestry, mediciinal gardening, beekeeping and fruit growning, and greening technologies. <b>The opportunity for local communities to benefit from learning about health and nutrition with environmental education at the primary school level makes Evelyn's teachings relevant now and for the future.</b><br />
<br />
"The Royal Horticultural Society and the National Trust have both identified an acute skills shortage in areas that Evelyn would have understood when writing his <i>Directions for the Gardiner at Says-Court</i> in the mid-1680s. <b>A Centre for Urban Horticulture, while training a new generation of local youth as skilled gardeners, could also become a centre of excellence in the fields of landscape urbanism and ecosystems performance.</b> It could advance natural and cultural heritage studies in cooperation with the <b>World Monuments Fund</b>, <b>English Heritage</b>, <b>National Trust</b>, the <b>Council for British Archaeology</b> and the <b>Garden History Society</b>. In this vision for the Centre, the four pillars of sustainable development identified in the UNESCO statements on HUL – economy, ecology, community and cultural resources – are integrated in an appropriately holistic way: [HUL] seeks to increase the sustainability of planning and design interventions by taking into account the existing built [and natural] environment, intangible heritage, cultural diversity, socio-economic and environmental factors along with local community values'.<br />
<br />
"<b>The international community of scholars and practitioners is watching the debate over Convoys Wharf and Sayes Court with great interest and some anxiety</b>. Will the GLA's guidance in the debate feature positively in textbooks to come as it has in the past in books devoted to biodiversity and climate-change planning? I, for one, am putting my faith in the Mayor and the GLA to reach the only right decision."<br />
<br />DEPTFORD IS...http://www.blogger.com/profile/15461323445196003952noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3273409189022605643.post-55752398525084449712014-03-22T21:26:00.001+00:002014-03-24T17:10:12.768+00:00'History guy' Dan Snow defends Deptford Royal Dockyard<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #134f5c;">At the beginning of February, historian and Lenox Project patron <b>Dan Snow</b>
issued a bleak warning that redevelopment plans for Convoys Wharf could
wipe out the birthplace of the Royal Navy if approved in their current
form.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxo17mZO685EfmtRGUJn6uC0X9q3NJSMcK7m7EnBb3pVOIiKLTz3i9KhaEUncQwhRlTP8dEGp93XswGTruln7hrBgRIjkb1th1fq0h9KJ8lkqedFt8_sR9BY0vhv0o7s7CIvo6ap_Zr-4/s1600/dan-snow-235px.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxo17mZO685EfmtRGUJn6uC0X9q3NJSMcK7m7EnBb3pVOIiKLTz3i9KhaEUncQwhRlTP8dEGp93XswGTruln7hrBgRIjkb1th1fq0h9KJ8lkqedFt8_sR9BY0vhv0o7s7CIvo6ap_Zr-4/s1600/dan-snow-235px.jpg" /></a></div>
“There are world famous naval dockyards right across Britain. Some of the finest museums in Europe can be visited in Portsmouth, Chatham and elsewhere, yet the place where it all began, where our maritime destiny took shape, is forgotten, and tragically ignored by the very city it did so much to shape. Deptford is where the Tudors decided to build naval ships to protect their ill-gotten kingdom from other invaders like themselves, and then to exploit the explosion in maritime activity that came with the discovery of sea routes to Asia and the Americas. Deptford is ground zero for the Royal Navy.<br />
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"The Lenox Project reconnects Londoners and all of us with a vitally important piece of our heritage. London grew rich because it was a port. Ships built at Deptford protected the trade on which London depended, and forged links between the growing city and the rest of the world. Today London is one of the earth’s most dynamic, outward looking, multi-cultural cities. That story starts at Deptford.<br />
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"This project is not just about preserving heritage. It is about creating the kind of international profile and draw that is impossible to replicate anywhere else. A block of flats, a nice looking office block is anonymous. They can be built from Shanghai to Seattle. Building a 17th century warship, on the site of one of the world’s greatest dockyards, a short distance from the beating heart of an international city, that is unique. The multiplier effect of interested people, scholars and tourists would be a major boon to the area, the city and the country.<br />
<br />
"People travel across the world to see the Vasa in Stockholm, the Victory, Mary Rose and others in Portsmouth, the Intrepid in New York. This would compete with any of them. The Lenox Project illuminates not just the past but the future too.”<br />
<br />DEPTFORD IS...http://www.blogger.com/profile/15461323445196003952noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3273409189022605643.post-5469994141532021832014-03-22T21:25:00.000+00:002014-03-22T21:25:46.760+00:00Samuel Pepys speaks to the nation<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="259" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/hldXXzlRBu4?rel=0" width="460"></iframe><br />
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Samuel Pepys, Secretary to the Royal Navy, held a press conference on 21st September 2013 at the Master Shipwright's House at Deptford Royal Dockyard. He implored the developer to consider more fully the history of the dockyard in the light of their plans to build 3500 luxury homes on the site now known as Convoys Wharf and bury all of the surviving heritage assets under concrete.<br />
<br />
The event was chaired by star of BBC TV's Horrible Histories Ben Willbond. The former secretary to the navy and celebrated diarist Pepys vented his anger at the total neglect of one of the most important sites in British history and called on the powers-that-be to permit the restoration of the Kings Yard, Deptford, to allow the building of a full-size, sailing, working replica of The Lenox.<br />
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Mr Pepys said: "I wept as a parent at the loss of a child when I returned to Deptford to see what had become of one England's greatest assets. I say to our authorities, 'What terrible loss of memory has afflicted you so?'<br />
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"This year is the 500th anniversary of the Royal Dockyard commissioned by Henry Vlll that itself heralded the beginning of England's navy and her pre-eminence as a world sea-power.<br />
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"I can think of no more fitting restoration than the building of a warship His Majesty King Charles commissioned me to build as the first of a great fleet. To see the Royal Dockyard buried forever under concrete would be to the everlasting shame of the nation!"<br />
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<i>Samuel Pepys is played by Deptford actor Jim Conway. Supporting cast as themselves: Ben Willbond (Horrible Histories), Helena Russell (Secretary, The Lenox Project CIC), Julian Kingston (Director, The Lenox Project CIC) as master shipwright John Shish, and Richard Endsor, author of The Restoration Warship, on which the Lenox project is based.<br /><br />The press conference was held on the first morning of the London Open House weekend, and was also filmed by BBC News who covered the day but did not air Mr Pepys' erudite speech.</i> <br />
<br />DEPTFORD IS...http://www.blogger.com/profile/15461323445196003952noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3273409189022605643.post-67512676851950278782014-03-07T11:08:00.001+00:002014-03-07T11:08:27.664+00:00'Deptford's Dockyard' shanty by the Deptford Shanty CrewThe Deptford Shanty Crew, which was formed last year, has written and performed a shanty about our campaign and made a video of it. We've included the words below, if you want to sing along.<br />
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We'd love to see this shared widely, to get our message out and make more people aware of the campaign and the projects, so please feel free to use the 'share' buttons on You Tube to send to your contacts, post on Facebook, tweet and so on.<br />
<br />
And if you want to join the shanty crew (no singing experience necessary, whooping and foot stamping welcome!) find out more <a href="http://www.buildthelenox.org/come-and-join-the-deptford-shanty-crew/" target="_blank">on the Lenox website</a>.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="280" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/j9Xz7jAK9ew" width="450"></iframe><br />
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<br />
Chorus:<br />
And it's [stamp] sell her off to a big business man<br />
There goes Deptford's dockyard<br />
There goes our history and our land<br />
Way off in the hands of the London mayor<br />
<br />
Verses:<br />
They dug up the anchor and took it away<br />
There goes Deptford's dockyard<br />
Would not listen to what the people say<br />
Now it's way off in the hands of the London mayor<br />
<br />
Locals wanna build the Lenox again<br />
Right there in Deptford's dockyard<br />
Could pass on their history to the next gen<br />
But it's way off in the hands of the London mayor<br />
<br />
Apprentices could learn the trade<br />
Right there in Deptford's dockyard<br />
Our maritime history could be saved<br />
But it's way off in the hands of the London mayor<br />
<br />
Open up the gardens for all to see<br />
Right there in Deptford's dockyard<br />
We want Evelyn's vision to be free<br />
But it's way off in the hands of the London mayor<br />
<br />
The developers just don't get the plan<br />
There goes Deptford's dockyard<br />
They're gonna flush our project down the pan<br />
They put it in the hands of the London mayor<br />
<br />
No jobs and homes for us in their plan<br />
Right there in Deptford's dockyard<br />
Just lots more cash in the developers bank<br />
Now it's way off in the hands of the London mayor<br />
<br />
They want to sell more expensive flats<br />
Right there in Deptford's dockyard<br />
But people come first and that is that<br />
And Deptford's history's worth more than cash!<br />
<br />
So listen to us and not their dough<br />
It's our Deptford dockyard<br />
Boris give our project a chance to grow<br />
Release it from the hands of the London mayorDEPTFORD IS...http://www.blogger.com/profile/15461323445196003952noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3273409189022605643.post-66101988822574638962014-02-25T21:06:00.000+00:002014-03-24T17:12:32.169+00:00Developer claims of 'significant concessions' on Convoys masterplan questioned by Deptford Is..An <a href="http://www.bdonline.co.uk/news/convoys-wharf-decision-delayed/5066659.article" target="_blank">article in Building Design </a>last week had Convoys Wharf developer Hutchison Whampoa claiming to have made 'significant' concessions in its masterplan following a recent meeting with the GLA.<br />
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The article, which noted that the determination of the application by the Mayor of London was now delayed according to the original schedule, said:<br />
<br />
<i>“We have made further revisions to our masterplan to address issues raised by local groups,” a spokesman for the developer said. “By moving the school, creating new space for a John Evelyn horticultural centre, lowering the height of a building on the boundary adjacent to the listed Shipwright’s House and offering the wharf site for the Lenox project, we have made significant concessions.”</i><br />
<br />
Unfortunately the developer's definition of 'significant' is at odds with our own understanding of the word, and the changes that have been made are either minimal, or in the case of <a href="http://www.buildthelenox.org/" target="_blank">the Lenox project</a>, non-existent. None of the amendments are sufficient to offer real hope or properly support the long-term viability of either of the community-led schemes.<br />
<br />
In truth, the situation for the Lenox project, despite Hutchison Whampoa's claim, is unchanged from the first public viewing of Farrell's revised masterplan. At the first public consultation in July 2012, a large ground-level model of the proposed redevelopment incorporated a model of a wooden ship on the protected wharf area. The model was labelled 'The Lenox Project'.<br />
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A verbal offer that the Lenox could occupy the protected wharf for '5-7 years' and then depart to somewhere else is still the only indication from Hutchison Whampoa that they have made any attempt to even consider this fantastic project. But as its promoters have made clear numerous times, a temporary presence on the site is entirely contrary to the central ethos of The Lenox Project vision.<br />
<br />
Using the Olympia building for the Lenox would not only offer a tangible link to the history of this listed structure, it would provide a long-term future for the building at the heart of the site.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggHZ4IbXVQ-OTnbM0pSZhY8YHiSLwUwAQVbTnnOdlYlC6bfjWBROcBykIPWxmK1WW8pk2b5GzNNHvUxHkxAW9oHbLa2TY_14XP5QNAll7DCs1pLo8RCeWY79DUZv5u08ajJW_nRrY9jCQ/s1600/exterior.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggHZ4IbXVQ-OTnbM0pSZhY8YHiSLwUwAQVbTnnOdlYlC6bfjWBROcBykIPWxmK1WW8pk2b5GzNNHvUxHkxAW9oHbLa2TY_14XP5QNAll7DCs1pLo8RCeWY79DUZv5u08ajJW_nRrY9jCQ/s1600/exterior.jpg" height="156" width="320" /></a></div>
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Although <a href="http://www.sayescourtgarden.org.uk/" target="_blank">Sayes Court Garden CIC</a> has persuaded the developer to make some adaptations to its masterplan, the implications of these changes for the developer are minimal and have been accommodated with no loss of floor space.<br />
<br />
But in order for the educational aims of the proposed John Evelyn Urban Horticulture Centre to be achievable, further changes are required, in particular relocating the centre to a stand-alone building located on the site of the former Sayes Court manor house.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnyZ-Ja-WXGQyqMEq8KymYdjlCQxkh0FEUmw7NfvX4k-wEPNEmbE9gs0MIKzVoO_4AI0wpUPJvIzyq6615pmtY0hOwW065PdEdmbq7gItXSRYXbEz-2Upy-fmBwJBmsmQ2ljsFjCCywqU/s1600/DKA_002_featured-672x372.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnyZ-Ja-WXGQyqMEq8KymYdjlCQxkh0FEUmw7NfvX4k-wEPNEmbE9gs0MIKzVoO_4AI0wpUPJvIzyq6615pmtY0hOwW065PdEdmbq7gItXSRYXbEz-2Upy-fmBwJBmsmQ2ljsFjCCywqU/s1600/DKA_002_featured-672x372.png" height="221" width="400" /></a></div>
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<br />
This stance is strongly supported by the National Trust and The Garden History Society. But although Sayes Court Garden CIC has demonstrated how such a change could be accommodated without compromising the developer's return or making significant changes to the masterplan, so far such requests have fallen on deaf ears. <br />
<br />
After a recent meeting between the developer and its professional advisers, the Greater London Authority planners, deputy mayor Sir Edward Lister and representatives of the local community groups, the Mayor of London's planners asked Hutchison Whampoa to make formal offers to both community groups as regards their options for a future presence on the site.<br />
<br />
We will report back as and when such offers are received by the community groups.<br />
DEPTFORD IS...http://www.blogger.com/profile/15461323445196003952noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3273409189022605643.post-58543229921081526542014-02-21T18:27:00.001+00:002014-02-21T18:29:08.907+00:00Royal Dockyard foundation stone set to return to DeptfordUniversity College London has pledged to return the Tudor foundation stone from the former Royal Dockyard to its home in Deptford.<br />
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The stone bears the initials of Henry VIII and his first queen Katherine of Aragon with a marriage knot, and belongs to the original naval storehouse built by the king in 1513 - the scheduled ancient monument whose below-ground remains are due to built over as part of the proposed Convoys Wharf development.<br />
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The stone marks the official royal foundation of the dockyard to the service of Henry VIII, when the navy became established; a facility which went on to build ships that sailed the world, defended Britain and discovered new lands.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBrzUmyKqlCLUhj6ARXQ2Nd4msbC0-oBE_imzACAPM_09NdmmTQHmzgxgh-57yPlHsd9-7_4tIRpX7sqDv_qjnW4Ekst2AQuUP8DktOSyMFTotdM1Qrz9MG8WmN0e324_UGyMXcwWXvWE/s1600/stone+whole.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBrzUmyKqlCLUhj6ARXQ2Nd4msbC0-oBE_imzACAPM_09NdmmTQHmzgxgh-57yPlHsd9-7_4tIRpX7sqDv_qjnW4Ekst2AQuUP8DktOSyMFTotdM1Qrz9MG8WmN0e324_UGyMXcwWXvWE/s1600/stone+whole.jpg" height="400" width="252" /></a></div>
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The stone was rediscovered by Chris Mazeika, a member of <i>Deptford Is.. </i>whose research into the dockyard led him to 1950s drawings of the artefact. It was during a chance visit to the UCL geography department that he glimpsed the stone, which had lain forgotten since being salvaged from the bomb-damaged yard after WWII. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmu0FQZx2QP4dV0Ove7QFgJfvE3b5sjrhpOWOWosIK9bgC41GqOyJ1P7bMkO2vQ6BopgCcznMbeOlIV7isIf1pWzeAV4SlLHnC7x2WGiZtuhxu8qXpRZ87lCN497Rij60KZRFXBaMcbzc/s1600/stone+detail.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmu0FQZx2QP4dV0Ove7QFgJfvE3b5sjrhpOWOWosIK9bgC41GqOyJ1P7bMkO2vQ6BopgCcznMbeOlIV7isIf1pWzeAV4SlLHnC7x2WGiZtuhxu8qXpRZ87lCN497Rij60KZRFXBaMcbzc/s1600/stone+detail.jpg" height="191" width="400" /></a></div>
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The university has now pledged to return the stone to its home, after efforts by World Monuments Fund Britain and Dr Negley Harte, honorary fellow and honorary research fellow in history at the university.<br />
<br />
Dr Jonathan Foyle, chief executive of WMF Britain said: "The rediscovery of the foundation stone reminds us that this site was the foremost royal dockyard of the Tudor period, and an historic site of national importance at this critical moment when its future is to be decided by the Mayor of London. We hope that UCL's pledge will help to inform the Mayor's decision on the scheme so that the cultural heritage is fully recognised and expressed in any future development."<br />
<br />DEPTFORD IS...http://www.blogger.com/profile/15461323445196003952noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3273409189022605643.post-12527924578837348722014-02-01T16:09:00.000+00:002014-02-01T16:09:01.252+00:00Royal Dockyard petition tops 1,500 signaturesSupport for our alternative vision for the former Royal Dockyard in Deptford continues to grow, with <a href="https://www.change.org/en-GB/petitions/reject-redevelopment-plans-for-deptford-s-royal-dockyard" target="_blank">our petition</a> now carrying more than 1,500 signatures, some of them from highly-regarded heritage associations, academics and authors as well as many more from people living, working or running businesses in Deptford. <div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoDEcEJkcdpWUt-0Zby9VWTxsSey3PCo5qZ4txid81FdLuehDiHqnt56ZX3QkztKgJeMeCDSldeyv0c_c5rJaEknyf0ODkvoUm8tWEUX_aqgZlxr7dfjJHyYui6G-_lVeWlSYM8OJu0NM/s1600/petition+image.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoDEcEJkcdpWUt-0Zby9VWTxsSey3PCo5qZ4txid81FdLuehDiHqnt56ZX3QkztKgJeMeCDSldeyv0c_c5rJaEknyf0ODkvoUm8tWEUX_aqgZlxr7dfjJHyYui6G-_lVeWlSYM8OJu0NM/s1600/petition+image.jpg" /></a></div>
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<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
There are also signatures on the petition from supporters as far afield as Australia, the USA, Latvia, and the UAE, showing that the site and its history has vast importance internationally as well as nationally. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
We will be bringing this support to the attention of the Mayor of London, ahead of his determination of the planning application for Convoys Wharf, but <b>if you have not yet signed the petition, there is still time to do so. </b>Supporting comments such as those we have printed below are most helpful, and if you have a particular affiliation which may add weight to your opinion, please include it.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
A selection of the comments on our petition which show the high level of support for our proposals:</div>
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<div>
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Dr Ann Coats</div>
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<i>Secretary, Naval Dockyards Society</i></div>
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"The Naval Dockyards Society believes that, given the rarity
of Tudor, and the non-survival of Stuart naval storehouses, the Great
Storehouse, even in its below ground fragmentary state, provides valuable
tangible indication of the importance of Deptford Dockyard to Henry VIII and
Elizabeth, especially linked to the nearby royal palace at Greenwich. The
remains below ground of Tudor, Stuart and Georgian storehouses are fragmentary,
but convey a distinctive individual character, intrinsic interest and value to
the current community in Deptford and neighbouring boroughs. If that is all we
have left, fragments are still important signifiers of cultural heritage which
should be valued, as fragments of Tudor castles and Mary Rose are valued.</div>
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The below ground remains embody Deptford’s tangible and
intangible heritage and ought to give this project a unique character which
will distinguish it from many other new developments, inform the overall design
and improve its ‘brand’.</div>
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Much more can be accomplished to memorialise these
below-ground features and make them relevant to today’s residents and visitors
than by merely marking their outlines above ground. Footprints should not only
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Professor Mark Laird</div>
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<i>Author and historian</i></div>
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"John Evelyn's Sayes Court is among the most important relic
sites as cultural and natural heritage. I have written about it on three
occasions and my new book, A Natural History of English Gardening, 1650-1800 will bring further attention to its significance as world
heritage."</div>
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<br /></div>
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Rob Benbow, Canada</div>
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"My ancestor, Admiral John Benbow, was Master Attendant at
Deptford in 1696, where he lived at Sayes Court, entertained Peter the Great,
Czar of Russia, and sailed from Deptford engaging the enemy for crown and country. We would like to see the history of the Deptford Dockyards preserved,
and the plans scaled down to allow the preservation of history. This is the
most historical dockyards of the British Royal Navy and should be recognised as
such.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Please review and adjust the
development plans to recognise this importance."</div>
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John Kempton</div>
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<i>Vice chairman, Medway Queen Preservation
Society</i></div>
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"I fully support this petition, and believe that both the
development and the Build the Lenox project can work together for the
improvement of the area and for the local but also national benefit." </div>
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<br /></div>
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Justin Reay</div>
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"As a naval historian and art historian, and editor of Samuel
Pepys' papers at the Bodleian Library, I am aware of the importance of iconic
sites to understanding our shared history. I am sure that the regeneration of
the site as proposed by parties to this petition will provide a lasting,
meaningful and worthy resource for future generations respecting our maritime,
horticultural and artistic history; the proposed development on this site will
not significantly add to the social housing stock in London and other sites are
available for that."</div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
Andrea Zuvich </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>Historian and blogger at The 17th Century Lady http://www.andreazuvich.com/</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
"Deptford's Royal Dockyard is of great historic value and
redevelopment would significantly impact this...for the worse. I, as a 17th
century historian, urge you to reject plans for redevelopment. We must protect
our nation's history and heritage."</div>
<!--EndFragment--></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
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Jean Hood</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>Maritime and naval author http://www.jeanhood.co.uk/books.html</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
"Deptford should not be degraded and stripped of its rich
history, especially its maritime history, to make profits for foreign investors
and<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>allow the government to tick
boxes re housebuilding figures.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>You cannot reclaim history when it is gone, and too much has been lost
to the egos and balance sheets of those who know the price of everything
and the value of nothing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
first maritime book I wrote was about an East Indiaman built in the late 18th
century at Deptford, just one of many merchant and naval ships to come from
that area over the centuries - ships that played a global role in the
development of trade, defence and offensive warfare. Its human community
provided many of the craftsmen who built the ships, the men who manned them and
their families who waited anxiously for them, and the wider population who
provided the services, from shops to taverns and brothels. Please leave
something of maritime London well alone."</div>
<!--EndFragment--></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
DEPTFORD IS...http://www.blogger.com/profile/15461323445196003952noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3273409189022605643.post-8183842410799927992014-01-26T14:11:00.000+00:002014-01-26T14:11:34.184+00:00Minister recognises the 'incredible importance' of the former Royal DockyardEd Vaizey, minister for culture, communications and creative industries, acknowledged Deptford's heritage and the role it could play in bringing 'significant benefits' for local economies and communities. His comment came in response to <a href="http://www.deptfordis.org.uk/2014/01/deptford-dockyard-and-sayes-court.html" target="_blank">Joan Ruddock's statement on Wednesday.</a><br />
<br />
Vaizey also confirmed that he expects English Heritage to report to him next month <i>(February) </i>on the listing application for other parts of the former Royal Dockyard. This report was originally not expected to be ready until later in the year, and concerns had been raised over whether it was appropriate for the mayor to make a decision on the planning application when such a major issue had not been resolved. <br />
<br />
In Wednesday's exchange in the Commons, the minister made some very encouraging comments as regards the significance of the site and the immensely important role the heritage could play in the long-term success of the redevelopment.<br />
<br />
"I have
listened with interest to her (Joan Ruddock's) remarks on the historic
importance of Convoys Wharf, and I certainly echo
everything she said," Vaizey began.<br />
<br />
"I am now in the
position... of being fully apprised of this
heritage jewel sitting at the heart of our great capital
city. At a time when London is once again one of the
pre-eminent cities in the world, it is worth our recalling
that one of the reasons it is so successful is its rich
history and heritage.<br />
<br />
"It says in my brief that Convoys
Wharf is of historic interest - well, that has to be the
understatement of the century. <b>It is incredibly important," </b>he emphasised.<br />
<br />
Vaizey was clear on the benefits heritage-led regeneration could bring to local people and businesses: "Focusing on heritage creates significant benefits
for local economies and communities. It breathes new
life into areas; it is essential to the economic and social
revival of our towns and cities."<br />
<br />
He also confirmed that the report on whether other parts of the site should be given additional protection was due very shortly - during the exchange making it clear that this would happen in February: "I expect English Heritage to report very
soon on whether other parts of the site should be
scheduled. I can give [Joan Ruddock] an undertaking this evening
that I will consider the report the minute it arrives, and
take a decision based on its recommendations in short
order."<br />
<br />
The minister's recognition of ongoing efforts by local residents and volunteers was unexpected, and appreciated; those involved know just how difficult it is to sustain such a campaign long-term while also trying to earn a living and have a social life. The time scale that the Mayor of London is attempting to impose on the decision-making process magnify this pressure significantly, even for the paid professionals who are involved.<br />
<br />
Vaizey said: "I should
also acknowledge the work of the volunteers and members
of the local community who have brought their imagination
and passion to bear in supporting the project. We
should bear it in mind that they are supporting it not
just for the benefit of their own community, but for the
benefit for the whole of London and the whole nation."<br />
<br />
His commitment to ensuring that the local community was properly involved was also encouraging: "Finally, let me put myself at the right hon. Lady’s
disposal. If she needs me to convene a meeting with the
developers, with the Greater London Association, or
with anyone else whose views she believes are relevant, I
stand ready to assist her in any way that she considers
suitable."<br />
<br />
Backed by the context of ongoing meetings between the GLA, Lewisham planners and representatives of Deptford Is.., the Lenox Project and Sayes Court Garden, we are cautiously encouraged by the minister's words, in particular his support of the community-led proposals.<br />
<br />
Such comments suggest that the true significance of this historic site, and the relevance of the projects being proposed by locals, is slowly becoming apparent to a wider audience. We can only hope that the Mayor of London experiences a similar clarity of vision, and that his response will be driven by proper decision-making considerations rather than an attempt to meet a one-size-fits-all timescale.<br />
<br />
Read the full exchange on Hansard <a href="http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201314/cmhansrd/cm140122/debtext/140122-0004.htm#140122107005692" target="_blank">via this link.</a>DEPTFORD IS...http://www.blogger.com/profile/15461323445196003952noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3273409189022605643.post-52961433483990683862014-01-22T19:10:00.001+00:002014-01-23T14:01:53.731+00:00Deptford Dockyard and Sayes Court Garden discussed in ParliamentA press release from our local MP: watch the debate on BBC Parliament via Iplayer <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b03s6d84/House_of_Commons_22_01_2014/?t=6h18m57s" target="_blank">here</a>.<br />
<br />
<i>Dame Joan Ruddock MP has challenged the government to recognise the unique heritage features of the site of Henry VIII’s naval shipyard, otherwise known as Convoys Wharf, Deptford, the subject of a multimillion pound planning application. </i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>Joan Ruddock said:
‘This development must be led by its heritage. Convoys Wharf with a foot print equivalent to the Southbank covers the site of Henry VIII’s naval shipyard established in 1513. Archaeological surveys have revealed extensive slipways, the great basin and dry dock, the remains of the Tudor storehouse and the foundations of the great diarist John Evelyn’s 17th Century manor house. </i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>‘This site is <b>one of London’s best kept secrets </b>and also one of its greatest opportunities.’ </i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>In an adjournment debate today Joan Ruddock told the minister:
‘We want to create a destination that both honours the past and creates a vision of the future that embraces the vibrant and dynamic community that is Deptford’. </i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>She said:
‘Two locally developed projects would fulfil that ambition and demand incorporation at this stage of the planning process. Sayes Court Garden would create a 21st century garden at the entrance to the development and an Urban Horticulture Centre. </i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>Building the Lenox would build a replica of the 17th century wooden warship in the grade II listed Olympia building which covers historic slipways.’ </i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>Sir Terry Farrell’s master plan for the site puts the Olympia at the heart of the development however the plan, while recognising the projects, fails to place them within their historic context. </i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>Current owners Hutchison Whampoa have asked the GLA to determine their outline planning application.
In the debate tonight Joan Ruddock will be appealing to the heritage minister to back the local vision. </i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>Specifically she will ask the Minister to activate an emergency listing/scheduling procedure based on the available archaeology. This would ensure that Hutchison Whampoa and the GLA proceeded with the full knowledge of the heritage protections on the site and how this should influence design and construction decisions. </i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>‘Convoys Wharf sits alongside the Greenwich World Heritage site of the Royal Palaces, the National Maritime Museum and Cutty Sark. Hutchison Whampoa have a unique opportunity to create a development with heritage at its heart and for Deptford and its dockyards to once again become a jewel in London’s crown.’</i>DEPTFORD IS...http://www.blogger.com/profile/15461323445196003952noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3273409189022605643.post-77372800874538624722014-01-18T06:20:00.002+00:002014-01-18T07:38:44.928+00:00Council recommends rejection of Convoys Wharf applicationThis week Lewisham Council's strategic planning committee recommended that the Mayor of London <b>reject</b> the outline planning application for Convoys Wharf in its current form.<br />
<br />
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<br />
The council is a statutory consultee in the planning process now that the Mayor of London has called in the application; with many years' experience of considering applications for the site, it's reasonable to conclude that Lewisham planners are also a major source of advice to the GLA about the application.<br />
<br />
During <a href="http://councilmeetings.lewisham.gov.uk/ieListDocuments.aspx?CId=194&MId=3234" target="_blank">this week's meeting</a>, the committee considered - and agreed - <a href="http://councilmeetings.lewisham.gov.uk/documents/s26511/Committee%20Report%2006-01-2014%20-%20FINAL%20-%20with%20diagram.pdf" target="_blank">a report by the council's planners</a> recommending that the application in its current form should not be approved. The committee also made some amendments to the recommendations to further strengthen the case against certain aspects of the application, and added another clause about the handling of construction waste and material deliveries, and other potential nuisance from construction.<br />
<br />
The report explains the site's planning history and in its recommendations, raises issues relating to the proposed scheme that in the council's opinion need further resolution before planning permission should be granted. <br />
<br />
The committee was first addressed by local MP Dame Joan Ruddock, who highlighted many of the issues that were raised in the report; in common with many of the other presenters she noted that she had been responding to redevelopment proposals for this site for more than a decade, although the current application was only submitted in April 2013. Representatives of local groups such as the Lenox Project, Sayes Court Garden, Pepys Community Forum and other interested parties were allowed to speak, before the committee deliberated its decision.<br />
<br />
The council's report details the responses to the initial application that were received (p23 onwards) including statutory consultees such as English Heritage, TFL and the Environment Agency, as well as local organisations such as the Pepys Community Forum, Greenwich Society, the Greenwich Conservation Group and other interested parties including London City Airport and the Port of London Authority.<br />
<br />
The final section of the report (p44 onwards) sets out the main planning considerations and the council's position; many of these comments are then drawn through into the final recommendations. We have reported the main ones below, in the order they appear in the report.<br />
<br />
<u>Principle of redevelopment</u><br />
The report is clear that the council supports the principle of the redevelopment, but raises questions about the development strategy for the site, and the interpretation and acknowledgement of the site's history in the masterplan. '<b>Certain aspects of the proposed development.. are considered unacceptable in their current form'. </b><br />
<br />
<u>Safeguarded wharf</u><br />
The lack of any proposed use for the safeguarded wharf (on the northern boundary of the site) introduces an uncertainty regarding is use, in particular given the proximity of public space and residential properties. The formal process of reducing the protected wharf area also needs clarification.<br />
<br />
<u>Employment space</u><br />
The council wants a commitment to cultural uses (for example the range of projects set out in the Cultural Strategy) secured through the Section 106 agreement for the site; considers that uses across the site should be secured and the non-residential space and employment use be maximised. The report also highlights <a href="http://www.buildthelenox.org/" target="_blank">the Lenox Project</a> as 'an important employment opportunity..with a clear link to the site's history' and recommends that the GLA should actively promote its incorporation into the site. <br />
<br />
<u>Housing</u><br />
The lack of affordable housing that the development is offering was raised by many of the objectors, and discussed by councillors as a major issue. Although the application claims 15% of the units will be 'affordable', only 6-7% of these will be for social rent, and in fact one speaker pointed out that <b>when assessed against Lewisham Council's definition of affordability, this falls to zero</b>. The council report questions the robustness of the viability calculations the developer has used to assess what percentage of units should be affordable, and wants it to be reassessed. The committee also wanted a mechanism to allow periodic reassessments during the development period. The report also raises questions about whether the daylight/sunlight impact of the development has been properly assessed.<br />
<br />
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<br />
<u>Layout</u><br />
In a number of key locations, the layout fails to respond appropriately or in a meaningful way to the heritage assets on the site.<br />
<br />
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<br />
<br />
<u>Heritage</u><br />
The setting of the Olympia Building does not reflect its importance to the site; the council wants the heights of the buildings which surround it to be reduced to a general height of ten storeys. In particular, the two buildings which frame the view from the Olympia Building to the river (P02 and P03) need amending to improve this visual connection. In addition the blocks next to the Master Shipwrights House should be reduced in height to respect this historic building; according to the report this request has already been made to the developer. Another area of concern is <a href="http://www.sayescourtgarden.org.uk/" target="_blank">Sayes Court Garden</a> and the site of John Evelyn's house, which are also not adequately reflected in the masterplan. The layout should be reassessed and a 'green link' between Sayes Court Garden and the site of the house should be established. The masterplan should also identify a dedicated space to allow for the construction of the Lenox.<br />
<br />
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<br />
<u>Scale and massing</u><br />
Acceptable building heights need to be fixed at this stage, and the council's report states that the proposed reduction in heights could be accommodated without reducing the overall quantum of development.<br />
<br />
<u>Transport, access and movement</u><br />
The report questions the robustness of the transport assessment for the site, in particular the impact of the development on highway traffic, which it claims has been understated. The suggestion that the full investigation of this could be left until after the application is determined 'raises serious concerns'.<br />
<br />
<u>Social infrastructure</u><br />
The section 106 agreement is planned to include provision of a primary school on the site, but the council also wants a contribution to secondary school provision for the borough. At the meeting the committee also requested that this recommendation be strengthened to cover other social infrastructure such as GP provision.<br />
<br />
<u>Environmental impact assessment</u><br />
The report questions the adequacy of the applicant's Environmental Impact Assessment and whether it complies with the requirements of the Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations. It warns that 'any permission could be at risk of legal challenge on such grounds'<br />
<br />
The recommendations that the committee approved are on pages 66 and 67 of the report - amendments agreed at the meeting strengthen them further and an additional recommendation relating to a construction code of practice was added.<br />
<br />
The official line from GLA officers is still that a decision is intended to be made in February.<br />
<br />
<br />DEPTFORD IS...http://www.blogger.com/profile/15461323445196003952noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3273409189022605643.post-21313379327769612252014-01-12T21:38:00.000+00:002014-01-12T21:39:44.673+00:00Update on the GLA's consideration of Convoys Wharf planning applicationWith signs that a decision on the Convoys Wharf planning application may be made within the next two months, <i>Deptford Is...</i> hopes supporters can find the time to write to the Mayor of London with objections, and to spread the word about our petition. We also need people to write letters to the press and keep up the pressure on the Mayor to make the right decision for Deptford.<br />
<br />
Community-led heritage schemes Sayes Court Garden and the Lenox Project have been working hard to try and ensure that the outcome does not eliminate any opportunities for our projects to be successfully incorporated.<br />
<br />
<b>December 2013 </b><br />
<br />
Just before Christmas, Joan Ruddock MP arranged a meeting with Deputy Mayor of London Sir Edward Lister and the GLA planners to present the case for the Lenox Project and Sayes Court Garden.<br />
<br />
The two projects combined forces to lobby for a strong heritage focus at the centre of the site, advancing the idea that ship building would be the 'heart' and the garden the 'lungs' of Deptford's Royal Dockyard, and introducing a central cultural theme that the current masterplan completely lacks.<br />
<br />
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<br />
This involved the Lenox Project agreeing a compromise to push for its second preferred option for the siting of the ship's construction – in the Olympia Shed. The present application has no real vision for the Olympia Shed, and the developer has been adamantly against the use of Lenox's first choice, the Double Dry Dock where the original ship was built.<br />
<br />
Using the Olympia Shed to build the Lenox would require the re-opening or reconstruction of the Great Basin in order to launch her, which would result in this space becoming a functioning marine space rather than the tiny shallow mirror pool presently proposed. Such an idea is supported in principle by English Heritage and would involve no alteration to current building layout.<br />
<br />
Sayes Court Garden's proposals called for the archaeological remains of John Evelyn's Manor House, currently to be housed within a giant residential block, to stand alone in a new building which would become the John Evelyn Centre (for horticultural study) and be surrounded by gardens. This would become part of a sweep of open space joining the Olympia Shed with what remains of Sayes Court Garden outside the site. This proposal would involve changes to the proposed residential block and for the school to be relocated elsewhere within the site.<br />
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Both projects were encouraged by Sir Edward Lister's responses and felt the meeting had been positive. It also seemed as though the planners would be taking their time to arrive at a satisfactory decision and not rushing to fulfil the Mayor's promise to decide on the application before the end of February 2014. <br />
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<b>January 2014</b><br />
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Post Christmas, we have learned from Lewisham planners that the GLA seem now to only really be seeking changes to the masterplan that are possible within the original deadline of February, and none of these address the specific requests made by the projects. In fact, quite the contrary.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhocH2HGYZslcWuR9tkA-NNilWuIq4Kfj8imhtSYH99CmU_zO-t5rQqynZMIJvVfOvgUs8ZAeOVGv4DRuzC7eodp6gZIR2RzqCNKVZ7C34Gf1N4DBvzj8gDaARDWgKqP3V66k1f5ln65LI/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-01-07.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhocH2HGYZslcWuR9tkA-NNilWuIq4Kfj8imhtSYH99CmU_zO-t5rQqynZMIJvVfOvgUs8ZAeOVGv4DRuzC7eodp6gZIR2RzqCNKVZ7C34Gf1N4DBvzj8gDaARDWgKqP3V66k1f5ln65LI/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-01-07.jpg" height="229" width="320" /></a></div>
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Instead, GLA planners are asking Hutchison Whampoa to consider moving the proposed primary school (P17) into block P16, to integrate it more into the site as a whole. It would then function as a community space along the lines of the Deptford Lounge, to be shared with the community outside of school hours. <br />
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However, the land vacated by the school is not to be given to Sayes Court Garden but instead remain the property of the school and, like the school, only made available for community use outside of school hours.<br />
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The Sayes Court Garden team is encouraged that the GLA has asked HW to make revisions to this part of the masterplan, but this needs to be more thoroughly examined, with the full involvement and consultation of the project and its partners, in order that it can realise its full potential.<br />
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As they stand, the proposals would make it impossible for Sayes Court Garden to achieve its full potential, particularly in terms of eduation, involvement of national partners and tourism.<br />
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With regard to the Lenox Project, it would appear that the GLA planners are giving credence to claims by HW that the slipways under the Olympia structure are not capable of bearing the load of the Lenox under construction. This assumption has not been substantiated by a structural or geotechnical engineer, independent or otherwise.<br />
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In addition, HW claims that the reinstatement of the basin poses a 'high archaeological risk'. Although the GLA has asked HW to investigate whether this can be resolved, it seems that the planners are ready to discount this option without imposing sufficiently rigorous scrutiny or commissioning any kind of independent assessment of the claims.<br />
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English Heritage supports in principle the idea of using the Olympia Shed and the Great Basin for construction of the Lenox; such support demonstrates it is worth conducting a full survey and we would not be able to accept HW's claims unless this had been done. <br />
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Worst of all, the planners have asked HW to produce a new assessment of how the Lenox could be constructed on the protected wharf. This is highly disappointing news since Sir Edward Lister had stated at the pre-Christmas meeting that any decisions about the protected wharf would take "considerably longer than determination of the rest of the site, quite possibly years". The Lenox Project has argued many times that the protected wharf is totally unworkable, not least because HW intends to use it during construction, and the project would not be viable in this location.<br />
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Read the Lenox Project's <a href="http://www.buildthelenox.org/disappointing-news-to-start-the-year/" target="_blank">response to this disappointing news </a>on the website.<br />
<br />DEPTFORD IS...http://www.blogger.com/profile/15461323445196003952noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3273409189022605643.post-51702362969051146012013-11-15T16:14:00.000+00:002013-11-15T16:39:32.596+00:00Petition the Mayor of London to reject Convoys Wharf application<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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At the end of October, the decision on planning permission for Convoys Wharf was taken out of Lewisham's control when the Mayor of London stepped in at the developer's request (see <a href="http://www.deptfordis.org.uk/2013/11/mayor-of-london-takes-over-planning.html" target="_blank">previous post</a>).<br />
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This means local people may no longer make individual objections to the application. Deptford Is... have therefore <a href="http://www.change.org/en-GB/petitions/reject-redevelopment-plans-for-deptford-s-royal-dockyard" target="_blank"><b>set up a petition</b></a> to give a voice to Deptford citizens, their friends and supporters, and to let Boris Johnson and the Greater London Authority (GLA) know the breadth of opposition there is to the current proposals. <b> </b><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<a href="http://www.change.org/en-GB/petitions/reject-redevelopment-plans-for-deptford-s-royal-dockyard" target="_blank"><span style="color: #134f5c;"><b>REJECT REDEVELOPMENT PLANS FOR DEPTFORD'S ROYAL DOCKYARD</b></span></a> <br />
<span style="color: #134f5c;">Hutchison Whampoa's plans for the Royal Dockyard will wipe out centuries of maritime and horitcultural history. Britain needs a visionary heritage scheme to transform Deptford and inspire generations. </span></blockquote>
<b><span style="color: #990000;">PLEASE <a href="http://www.change.org/en-GB/petitions/reject-redevelopment-plans-for-deptford-s-royal-dockyard" target="_blank">SIGN THIS PETITION</a> AND SHARE THE LINK WITH YOUR FRIENDS, NEIGHBOURS AND COLLEAGUES.</span></b><br />
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It is not only Deptford's and London's heritage at stake – the site is of international importance. So enlist the support of your friends overseas and make this a worldwide protest to SAVE THE KING'S YARD!<br />
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<b>NB: The battle for Convoys was featured in Private Eye this week (Issue 1353). (Click on the image below)</b><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRabT_DqJ8Apq9EZg7PDedX5X0mjy2wvv-i-b4u3v_S7_tswQxDp2M5rprwlGC3TSIaKPpy42jP7worZhrJQifIWfAhM5vpxcPv0l6CHYOkL56e37axJ6ylMfzolhyzfnfQNE4f1clOD0/s1600/Private+Eye+1353-15-11-13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRabT_DqJ8Apq9EZg7PDedX5X0mjy2wvv-i-b4u3v_S7_tswQxDp2M5rprwlGC3TSIaKPpy42jP7worZhrJQifIWfAhM5vpxcPv0l6CHYOkL56e37axJ6ylMfzolhyzfnfQNE4f1clOD0/s320/Private+Eye+1353-15-11-13.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<br />DEPTFORD IS...http://www.blogger.com/profile/15461323445196003952noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3273409189022605643.post-40535640494459076642013-11-01T19:46:00.000+00:002014-06-06T17:55:15.766+01:00Mayor of London takes over planning control of Convoys<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #134f5c;"><i><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-bidi-font-family: Times;">Deptford Is… responds to the news that Boris Johnson has “called-in”
Hutchison Whampoa’s outline application...</span></i></span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA6cgGLOerbcafdnDlgubop0z1fRikRoRLJZZDvZLz2vulXRka44kRHSNwUmwLgTJY2FIvD8gKrTjCJFDeEbe8qh3W2z1K75GTEQ_-GC4WqzLwBCKrgWrky9aNzN0CtZudg0v1KpMD6aw/s1600/Milton+1753-460.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA6cgGLOerbcafdnDlgubop0z1fRikRoRLJZZDvZLz2vulXRka44kRHSNwUmwLgTJY2FIvD8gKrTjCJFDeEbe8qh3W2z1K75GTEQ_-GC4WqzLwBCKrgWrky9aNzN0CtZudg0v1KpMD6aw/s1600/Milton+1753-460.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #134f5c;"><b><span lang="EN-US">Recent background</span></b></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US">Negotiations between Hutchison Whampoa and Lewisham planners were ongoing with a view to planning recommending the application to the Strategic
Planning Committee for a decision in February 2014. Before this, they were hoping to resolve
important issues relating to transport, design & heritage, Sayes Court Garden &
the Lenox Project, and sustainability. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US">In July, English Heritage responded to the application and told
Lewisham <b><i>“We remain concerned that the
overall scale of development is such that the opportunity to create a
distinctive sense of place which responds to the outstanding historic legacy of
the site has not been realized.”</i></b> The link between the Olympia Shed and the
river was a crucial one, they said, and the <b><i>“narrow
glimpsed view”</i></b> that is included in Farrell’s masterplan <b><i>“fails to make the best opportunity of this
prominent and centrally-located heritage asset.”</i></b> </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US">Consequently, <a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B5GYbyj7LZLyV0JlMENDOERidFU/edit" target="_blank">Lewisham's</a></span></span></span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B5GYbyj7LZLyV0JlMENDOERidFU/edit" target="_blank"> planners wanted a more sensitive approach</a> to the
heritage aspects of the site, and were asking for a “heritage response” to be
part of the application’s design principles that were to govern future design. Of
particular concern was the positioning and heights of the blocks surrounding
the Olympia Shed.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US">The planning department also suggested that </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">some of the proposed blocks should be further subdivided, so that the</span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> resulting development would not exceed the maximum</span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> parameters of floorspace and land use already agreed. Other issues requiring discussion were road widening to accommodate a new
bus route and other highway adaptations for the proposed cycle superhighway, as well as more
thorough Design Guidelines to show how different buildings will emerge and how
land uses might evolve.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US">They were also asking for an update on the local heritage projects, and
wished to discuss the possibility of extending the area of Sayes Court Garden
and re-siting the Lenox Project to the Double Dry Dock (the developer has failed to talk to either
project in recent months). </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US"><a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B5GYbyj7LZLyS1BiWTFqS1drLVU/edit" target="_blank">At this point, Hutchison Whampoa threw its toys out of the pram</a>, as if its masterplan was incontrovertable and not subject to planning processes whereby different stakeholders could give their views on it (the application went in rather unexpectedly in April, without any preliminary discussions). Indeed English Heritage did not respond till July, but well within the consultation period that extended till September. The timetable Lewisham gave this application was ample considering the various stakeholders, and time had to be given for planners to discuss the various detailed objections with the applicant.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US">Director of European operations, <b>Dr Edmond Ho</b>, told planners <i>“we believe the approach you are
taking, in not only requesting further changes to the masterplan but even
introducing new constraints and unrealistic demands</i><i> (eg reference to the Lenox
being located on the Double Dry Dock, Sayes Court Garden and the New King
Street widening becoming a pre-requisite to outline consent)</i><i>, is both
unreasonable and unwarranted, given the <b>already
tough viability constraints</b>.”</i></span></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: small;"><span style="color: #134f5c;"><b><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The call-in</span> </b></span><i><br /></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US">Shortly afterwards, <a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B5GYbyj7LZLybXYxeVBvZXBrRXc/edit" target="_blank">Hutchison Whampoa wrote to the Mayor of London </a>requesting he “call in” the
application. Bypassing local processes, and citing “delays” and erosion of
profits as a basis for his actions, Ho made a pre-emptive request for a
premature decision. The Mayor duly called in the planning application on the
grounds that the relationship between the developer and Lewisham had
irrevocably broken down. And also that, for some strange reason, the planning process would be derailed by local 2014 elections in May; mystifying, considering there is likely to be no overall change in the council as a result. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US">This move is almost unprecedented; the Mayor would not normally take
over an application from a local authority until a decision had been made. Both
inside and outside the council it was assumed Lewisham was <i>not</i> going to reject it. Surely Ho
would have realised that the decision-making process the GLA must now go through is likely to take longer than Lewisham have been taking? <a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B5GYbyj7LZLycFpfbmxpMTM1MWM/edit" target="_blank">Despite intimations in the report from his officers</a> that it is not feasible, Boris is promising a decision by February. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US">By involving the Mayor of London, the process will now take place on a
much larger stage. The developer’s refusal to engage with stakeholders and
accommodate the worldwide importance of the site's heritage will become ever more
visible (it is this non-negotiable stance which has held back the development,
not the planners). Meanwhile, by approaching London’s Mayor directly, Ho has terminated the
democratic planning process and made a mockery of the Localism Act. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US">He is also perhaps hoping to bypass the final Archaeology report that
is yet to be submitted. The report is expected to acknowledge that some 75% of the infrastructure representing 500 years of dynamic development of the Royal Dockyard at Deptford is
essentially intact and ready to reinstate for maritime purposes. Or
perhaps the final straw for the developer was the World Monuments Fund putting
the site on its Watch List?</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #134f5c;"><b><span lang="EN-US">Lies, damned lies and conflicts of interest</span></b></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US">In his letter to Lewisham – which will also have been seen by the Mayor
of London and the GLA – Edmond Ho claimed the GLA and Lewisham's Design Panel have
endorsed the masterplan and overall development. </span></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US">It is likely, however, that comments from Lewisham's own design panel prompted further questions</span></span></span> that the planners put to the developer. Meanwhile, the GLA have responded
favourably in so far as the application fulfills the priorities of the London
Plan in terms of housing and employment. In fact the GLA has noted that
Lewisham has met its housing targets over and above requirements. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US">For Lewisham the task is far more complex than simply fulfilling
the demands of the London Plan. London Assembly Member for Greenwich and
Lewisham <a href="http://www.newsshopper.co.uk/news/lewisham/10776943.Boris_Johnson_takes_control_of___1bn_Deptford_Convoys_Wharf_plans/" target="_blank">Len Duvall</a> said: <i>"While the
Mayor could have worked with the borough to progress development, as they have
done for years, he cannot ignore the real concerns Lewisham was working through
in the run up to a decision." </i> </span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US">Lewisham's CEO, Barry Quirk, told Building Design magazine that Lewisham had a realistic and deliverable timescale for determining the application. Lewisham has "significant concerns" about the proposals but they could be resolved "if the applicant is willing". Quirk pointed out that the developer had </span><span lang="EN-US"><span lang="EN-US">submitted its plans at too early a stage, cutting short pre-application discussions, and had recently </span>cancelled meetings at which outstanding issues could have been resolved.<i><br /></i></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US">Meanwhile Ho’s letter to the planning department also stated that HW had <b><i>“fully considered points raised by English
Heritage”</i></b>. With a familiar arrogance, HW's response to English Heritage’s
comments has been <i>"to explain how the
masterplan decisions were reached”. </i>Of course, those decisions were made
before EH’s report was submitted, and HW has subsequently refused to alter its plans in order to acknowledge EH’s unambiguous request to reduce the density
of the development. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US">The letter went on to say that HW's architect <i><b>“Sir Terry Farrell himself also took the time to meet with English
Heritage to satisfy the concerns being raised – we understand English Heritage
have largely accepted the overall approach being taken”</b>.</i> English Heritage
have <b>denied such a meeting took place</b>, whilst Farrells have so far been unable to comment. </span></span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJFT7w15PBU1A_f6q6uxwWSSitfhkf9onMZnyhb2VvwcKredPVxD-Roh52Rc-g6qNQjYXPmW2MZm-T6gEWpaki5ijJuhIy3iI_nYO17pKfBaTd03Oucmo2WG-bhJAiOveR_ORCyMcnCoo/s1600/ho+letter-460.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJFT7w15PBU1A_f6q6uxwWSSitfhkf9onMZnyhb2VvwcKredPVxD-Roh52Rc-g6qNQjYXPmW2MZm-T6gEWpaki5ijJuhIy3iI_nYO17pKfBaTd03Oucmo2WG-bhJAiOveR_ORCyMcnCoo/s1600/ho+letter-460.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US">It is also interesting to note that Sir Terry is part of the Mayor’s
Design Advisory Group, which plays “a significant role in shaping future
developments which fall under the Mayor’s responsibility through his
regeneration, planning, housing and land powers.” Sir Terry advises the Mayor
on “how to secure the best results on new developments through procurement.”
Could this not be viewed as a conflict of interests?</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US">Ho insists that making further changes to the masterplan
pushes <i>“the viability of the project to
its limits”</i>. The owner of Hutchison Whampoa Properties is Li Ka Shing, the
eighth richest billionaire in the world. He made a speculative purchase of the
land and as such, assumed the risk for his speculation and, with it, any losses
resulting from any and all legal decisions made about the site, its use, or
future.</span><span lang="EN-US"> It is the responsibility of neither London’s Mayor nor Lewisham
Council to mitigate the owner’s risk. </span></span></span>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US">However, Boris’s recent trade visits to China suggest a sympathetic
hearing for the Chinese conglomerate, and Boris is also very pally with Rupert
Murdoch, as is Li Ka Shing. News International, who sold the site to Hutchison
Whampoa, retain a profit share in the sale of the residential units. Murdoch’s blatant
disregard for the heritage of the site became apparent when he demolished the 18<sup>th</sup>
century Storehouse (older than the Olympia Shed) in 1984.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US">We can expect to hear a lot of propaganda about this development’s
contribution to solving the London housing crisis, even though 3000 of the 3500
units will be sold off-plan to the many foreign investors who are currently
parking their cash, tax-free, in London property and earning enough on their
investment to not even need to bother renting it out.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #134f5c;"><b><span lang="EN-US">A heritage jewel in London’s crown</span></b></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US">Whilst the present owner may hold the freehold, the history,
heritage, use and future of this significant Thames site belongs to London,
Londoners, the UK and the nations around the world that benefited from the
naval and maritime advances that emanated from this site. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US">Henry VIII’s Royal Dock at Deptford is now designated as one of the country’s
heritage assets at risk – in this case, from insensitive redevelopment. It is the Mayor of London’s role to safeguard London’s
heritage – including its value in attracting finance for Lewisham Council. London
urgently needs economic growth beyond the financial sector, and a restored
heritage site alongside a dynamic, regenerated dock will widen the Thames
economy. This is a distinctive and rare opportunity for London’s Mayor to
herald London’s world-changing maritime achievements over some 500 years.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US">Deptford’s MP, <a href="http://www.joanruddock.org/2/post/2013/10/convoys-wharf-take-over.html" target="_blank">Joan Ruddock</a>, has already written to the Mayor to request
a meeting, calling the site <i>“an
archaeological and heritage jewel in London’s crown.”</i> She said, <i>“I will be trying to persuade the Mayor to
recognise the immense heritage value of this site both to local people and the
people of London. The development needs to reflect Deptford’s extraordinary
past while meeting local needs and fitting into the local environment.”</i></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US">Meanwhile, in June this year, <a href="http://www.deptfordis.org.uk/2013/06/mayor-of-london-pledges-support-for.html" target="_blank">Boris pledged his support</a> for the Lenox project in
answer to a written question from London Assembly member Darren Johnson. He
actually agreed that the ship be built at the Double Dry Dock – one of the ideas the
developer refuses to agree on. Perhaps Boris will suffer a bout of amnesia when
he is reminded of this fact. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #134f5c;"><b><span lang="EN-US">So what will Boris do?</span></b></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US">The decision to call in the planning decision offers Boris the chance to
do two things, which have so far been impossible to reach agreement on.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US">Firstly, he can use his power and influence to assist the owners to
appreciate that they own a very valuable piece of England’s story. The shaping
of their development – working with the uniqueness of the site and creating a
strong sense of place – can raise the value of the completed development. The
highest capital property value in London is at its peak when there is a strong
sense of place and history rather than the bland ubiquity of the current
Farrell masterplan. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US">High capital value can still encompass affordable housing in the mix.
Boris' relations with the Chinese will have taught him that in China the
respect for tradition is as strong as their search for modernity. He has the
personal power to broker this change of perspective and to bring the developer into a
positive relationship with the inherent values of the site and its story.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US">Secondly, Boris has the opportunity to create a stunning local success.
He is working with a passionate,
informed and vocal local community who
have shown vision and relentless commitment to participate in shaping the place
they live in. He can choose to demand that the owners, together with architects
and specialists, including English Heritage, the World Monument Fund and the
London Borough of Lewisham, start with a clean slate and remove all the assumptions
about this being just any old brownfield site. Boris can then represent his
London electorate and instigate a genuine re-masterplanning of the site as an
example of how he and the GLA can ensure Deptford and London can be resolutely
connected to its past and vibrantly engaged in its future.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US">Or, Boris can choose to accept the application (and the cash) wholly on
the investors’ terms and ignore the decades of public investment in developing a
sophisticated planning process.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US">Come on Boris, help us all to get back on track! Dismiss this masterplan
and start again. This site is a benchmark of how we all shape the city of the
future. The process will be complex but the result has the potential be a truly
multicultural international success. </span></span></span></div>
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<b>MAYOR OF LONDON'S CALL-IN (Oct-Nov)</b><br />
<b>24 Sept </b><a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B5GYbyj7LZLyV0JlMENDOERidFU/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">Lewisham Planning to Hutchison Whampoa (via BPTW)</a><br />
<b>10 Oct </b><a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B5GYbyj7LZLyS1BiWTFqS1drLVU/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">Hutchison Whampoa to Lewisham Planning</a><br />
<b>13 Oct </b><a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B5GYbyj7LZLybXYxeVBvZXBrRXc/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">Hutchison Whampoa to Mayor of London</a><br />
<b>30 Oct </b><a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B5GYbyj7LZLyZkJJSi1nOVN0dnM/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">Mayor of London to Lewisham Planning – decision letter</a> <br />
<a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B5GYbyj7LZLycFpfbmxpMTM1MWM/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">Mayor of London to Lewisham Planning – report</a><br />
<b>5 Nov </b><a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B5GYbyj7LZLyN1ctSXRkS2hsWW8/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">Mayor of London's office to Cllr Hall – Process</a><b><br /></b></div>
DEPTFORD IS...http://www.blogger.com/profile/15461323445196003952noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3273409189022605643.post-3466451323441224942013-10-22T22:55:00.000+01:002013-11-02T14:32:37.467+00:00"From the ground up...up...up..."; comments on recent press coverage.The 'new' Farrells masterplan, is not a new masterplan.<br />
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The previous Aedas masterplan proposed 3,500 homes,
three towers above 32 storeys, 2000+ parking spaces, shops, a hotel, some green space, and a nod to the history of the site.<br />
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There is <b>not a single new concept</b> in this masterplan, besides a gesture towards the ideas promoted by <i>Deptford Is...</i>.
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Masterplanning is a process of visualising, imagining and re-imagining. <b>But this new-old plan is the same number of Lego bricks in the same size tin. </b><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">© BBC London News, 19 October 2013</span><br />
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When Sir Terry Farrell was selected by Hutchison Whampoa to review the failed Aedas masterplan, Sir Terry, in the presence of Hutchison Whampoa’s UK director Edmond Ho, publicly promised the people of Deptford a new masterplan for the site of Henry VIII’s royal dockyard and John Evelyn’s Sayes Court Garden, now Convoy’s Wharf. They would start <i>"from the ground up"</i>. What did he mean?<br />
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Farrell’s architects recently claimed on BBC London News (above) to have used the character and history of the site to inform their masterplan. But it must be remembered that the quantum of units at 3,500 apartments, the typology of high rise towers of up to 48 storeys rising out of 12 storey blocks with their enclosed private green spaces resting on the top of four storeys of car parking – plus blanket <i>preservation in situ</i> of the historic dockyard structures – were <b>all</b> features of the previous <a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0ByI91MM-DPDVYzBiYzFiZGUtMTU5OS00MTI1LThiZjUtZGYxMjU2ZmU2YzVm/edit?usp=drive_web&urp=http://www.deptfordis.org.uk/p/resources_06.html&pli=1" target="_blank"><b>Aedas masterplan</b></a> (2012) which was <b>unanimously rejected</b> by the local community, English Heritage, Council for British Archaeology, Naval Dockyard Society and Lewisham Planning and a number of London amenity societies.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">The Aedas masterplan – the routes and the <i>real</i> green public spaces</span></div>
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Identical to the Aedas master plan, the Farrell’s masterplan <i>again</i> proposes the historic structures such as the GII listed Olympia Building and the Double Dry Dock remain as marooned stand-alone features amongst the Aedas typology of monolithic blocks. So what does this newly promised “from the ground up” Farrell’s masterplan deliver that the rejected Aedas masterplan did not?<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">The Farrells masterplan – routes and public spaces</span></div>
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Are the extant Tudor routes through the site expressed in the masterplan? Not yet, rather Farrells have opted to import a circulation feature of “one route back” from the river that has <i>never</i> been a feature of this enclosed self-contained site. What the Farrell’s monolithic gesture of “one route back” achieves is a cutting through of the extant Tudor routes, ignoring the historic perpendicular circulation to the river with pedestrian bridges crossing the potential open mouths of the dock, slips, basin and mast ponds – in favour of an imported notion. Rather than the circulation through the site being informed by the site’s own history and character, specific and characteristic to this internationally important historic site, Farrell’s have opted to impose an idea from elsewhere.<br />
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The expression of the historic dockyard structures in the Farrell’s masterplan is limited to an indication of a single slipway illustrated as a green space and the dry dock also illustrated as a green space. This decision to landscape these features does not reflect the historic maritime character of the site. Where, in the former dockyard basin for instance, there might be historic tall ships, a marina, a sailing centre, moored restaurant barges or a floating swimming pool, Farrell’s have proposed – exactly as Aedas did – that the basin is rendered as a dull hard landscaped 'town square feature' fronting the proposed Olympia building shopping centre, described by Sir Terry as the "heart" of the site. The question as to how a shopping centre purposefully reflects the history of London's most important maritime and shipbuilding centre remains unanswered.<br />
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When Farrell’s publicly claim that the archaeology and historic features have informed their designs to develop a masterplan from the ground up, it appears that in order to achieve three tower blocks of 48, 38 and 38 storeys, surrounded by monumental blocks of 12 storeys, the precise location for the massive extent of piling required to support this masterplan is determined by the ‘archaeology’. What is the effect of this masterplan on the archaeology? According to Museum of London reports, the effect of this masterplan on the archaeology is "severe". <i>Preservation in situ</i> means that the potential harm to the historic dockyard structures will go unmonitored and unnoticed.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Farrells masterplan overlaid on historic dockyard structures and Sayes Court Garden </span><br />
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Sir Terry Farrell talks about the ‘memory’ of the extant historic dockyard structures being ‘reflected’ in the masterplan. Why do we need memory to be reflected when the structures themselves exist and no-one yet knows whether these structures can be revealed because expert assessment has yet to take place? For example, studies need to be carried out to determine whether the yellow stock brick and hardwood slipways can be revealed in the masterplan. As heritage consultants, Alan Baxters Associates have stated the masonry and brick openings in the river wall, such as the masonry Dry Dock entrance, may be sustainable as a revealed structure.<br />
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If Farrell’s public promise has any value, we will see more than the currently proposed <i>preservation in situ</i> of the entire historic environment of the dockyard and Sayes Court Garden.DEPTFORD IS...http://www.blogger.com/profile/15461323445196003952noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3273409189022605643.post-27754841132222176752013-10-22T15:25:00.000+01:002013-10-22T22:39:37.068+01:00The World Monuments Fund listing<i>Statement from Dr Jonathan Foyle, Chief Executive of World Monuments Fund Britain:</i><br />
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“Every
two years, the World Monuments Watch reminds us the world around us
changes faster than ever before. Change is inevitable, but it needs to
be carefully managed so that we carry the best of the past into the
future, and minimise the destruction of our record as a species. So we
invite everyone to join us in supporting the champions of special places
that need a helping hand to stay useful and beautiful.<br />
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"In 1513 Henry VIII founded the Royal naval Dockyard at Deptford, and the King’s Yard became the foremost Royal dockyard of the Tudor period. Hundreds of warships and trading vessels were built here, including ships for exploration, science and empire. The <i>Mary Rose</i> was harboured in Deptford in 1517, and refitted there in 1523, and the dockyard remained a naval powerhouse for another 350 years. The site also includes John Evelyn’s seventeenth-century garden at Sayes Court, one of the most famous and revolutionary gardens of its time.</div>
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"The majority of the area has been concreted over in past decades, but recent excavations have revealed the dockyard’s extensive maritime heritage. Many large structures survive intact below (and in some cases above) ground level. However, the current low-level designation of the site remains unchanged despite this wealth of new archaeological data, and Deptford’s status as a heritage asset remains disproportionate with the survival of the fabric.</div>
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"2013 is Deptford’s 500th anniversary, and today the site awaits residential redevelopment. <b>Yet Deptford’s most imminent threat comes from the failure of existing proposals to fully acknowledge and respect the heritage assets that the site has to offer. Incorporating the extensive archaeology and combining this with unique public spaces has the potential to strengthen Deptford’s local identity whilst securing this lost piece of the Thames jigsaw. It would also improve awareness of the little-known existence and overlooked history of the dockyard and gardens on a national stage</b>."</div>
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DEPTFORD IS...http://www.blogger.com/profile/15461323445196003952noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3273409189022605643.post-57905126746787674952013-10-12T21:04:00.000+01:002013-10-12T21:04:36.147+01:00Deptford Royal Dockyard and Sayes Court Garden listed on the 2014 World Monuments Watch<br />
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<a href="http://www.wmf.org/project/deptford-dockyard-and-sayes-court-garden" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH2dSeNvZ9ZYqXFVeplXMzrfMOzl6uhFzB-16RkooHRJqC9DHZo6d2bDl4HknT1DO07JccONUSJRUXDrC9auXoi34co6e12ob9kZmcYERp5HnWVqZQmgHTY1YNFJ_CNNiCUCEzcsFjRag/s1600/WMF_Deptford_460.jpg" /></a></div>
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The Deptford Is... team are very pleased to issue the following Press Release this week:<br />
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<b><span style="color: #134f5c;">The announcement in New York on 8th October by the World Monuments Fund of their 2014 Watch marks a positive turning of the tide for Henry VIII’s Royal Naval Dockyard and John Evelyn’s Sayes Court Garden in Deptford.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: #134f5c;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #134f5c;">Both sites are under threat from Hong Kong based developer, Hutchison Whampoa, current owner of the majority of the land. HW has submitted plans for 3,500 new homes that will bury the historic landscape largely without trace. Both sites are of international historic significance. WMF Watch list status supports the Deptford Is campaign to build on rather than build over the rich history of the area.</span><br />
<span style="color: #134f5c;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #134f5c;">Most people will know the name Deptford, many will know the stories of Sir Francis Drake, Sir Walter Raleigh, Captain James Cook, the Mary Rose, the Golden Hinde, Trinity House, John Evelyn, the Gut-Girls, Erasmus, Samuel Pepys, Czar Peter the Great, Grinling Gibbons, Margaret and Rachel Macmillan, but few will have seen the monumental naval engineering dockyard structures that exist above and below ground or John Evelyn’s garden because since WWII Deptford has been shamelessly stripped of its history.</span><br />
<span style="color: #134f5c;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #134f5c;">The royal naval dockyard was the Cape Canaveral of its day, leading the technology of ship building in England. The site of the dockyard served the nation as a military base through five centuries to WWI and WWII. Sayes Court Garden was also a place of innovation, attracting visitors from all over Europe, heralded as the greatest garden of the age. Efforts to save Sayes Court in the 19th Century by Octavia Hill led directly to the formation of the National Trust, based upon the principles of access to open space in our cities.</span><br />
<span style="color: #134f5c;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #134f5c;">Deptford is London’s forgotten royal dockyard and Sayes Court is London’s lost garden. Like a missing piece of the jigsaw puzzle in the evolution of London as a port city and England as a maritime power, Deptford is at last being recognised and with access to its heritage can lay claim to the most historic stretch of the London Thames. Hutchison Whampoa’s proposal for <i>preservation in situ</i> (buried beneath residential tower blocks) of both the dockyard and Sayes Court is a wholesale obliteration of the opportunity for access to this world-class heritage. WMF support is critical in helping to make what has remained invisible visible once more.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c;">Today two key projects exist to connect Deptford’s history with the future. Both projects are locally generated and involve major national partners.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c;"><b>Sayes Court Garden</b> envisages the reinterpretation of John Evelyn’s garden, together with an institute of urban horticulture. Sayes Court Garden has support from the National Trust and the Eden Project and has the potential to be both a world-class destination and a rich local resource.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c;"><b>Build the Lenox</b> will provide training, tourism, business and foster local and national pride by constructing a 17th century wooden ship at the centre of a maritime enterprise zone. Build the Lenox already has the backing of London’s Mayor Boris Johnson and has as its patrons TV historian Dan Snow and local MP Dame Joan Ruddock.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #134f5c;">The WMF watch-list status will assist the people of Deptford, the local decision makers at Lewisham Council, English Heritage and the GLA to enhance the future of the two sites by creative planning and truly start the master plan “from the ground up” as publicly promised by HW’s architect Sir Terry Farrell in the presence of Edmond Ho, HW’s UK director.</span><br />
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<b><span style="color: #134f5c;">The announcement of WMF support is extremely important and exciting for the future of Deptford. The Dockyard and Sayes Court Garden are Deptford’s equivalent of The Mary Rose or Shakespeare’s Globe. Deptford has an unparalleled vivid history on the London Thames and the WMF watch-list status can help us celebrate a vibrant future. The historic landscape is the starting point. Once the site is formally protected, as all other royal naval dockyards are, the area including Sayes Court Garden will deliver visionary projects bringing jobs, tourism, business, pride in our community and an enhanced sense of place.</span></b><br />
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<i><span style="color: #134f5c;">Other facts about Deptford Dockyard and Sayes Court Garden:</span></i><br />
<span style="color: #134f5c;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #134f5c;">• Drake was knighted in the presence of Queen Elizabeth I in 1581 on board the Golden Hinde where the ship became a tourist attraction.</span><br />
<span style="color: #134f5c;">• Deptford has built royal ships and royal yachts since the 1400s and put out ships for naval battles including Armada and Trafalgar.</span><br />
<span style="color: #134f5c;">• The first Ark Royal (Ark Raleigh) was built at Deptford. Its master shipwrights were pre-eminent in the royal navy.</span><br />
<span style="color: #134f5c;">• John Evelyn was a commissioner for the building of the Royal Naval Hospital at Greenwich, he proposed an underground transport system for London and the planting of trees to scent and clear the London air.</span><br />
<span style="color: #134f5c;">• Czar Peter the Great of Russia learned shipbuilding at Deptford in 1698 in order to build the Russian navy.</span><br />
<span style="color: #134f5c;">• Captain James Cook hoisted the pennant on board the Endeavour in 1768 prior to his “discovery” of Australia. </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;"><a href="http://www.wmf.org/project/deptford-dockyard-and-sayes-court-garden" target="_blank"><b>See the World Monument Fund's announcement on their website. </b></a></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">The Royal George at Deptford, showing the launch of the Cambridge by John Cleverley the Elder © NMM</span><br />
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<b>Further comment from Deptford Is...</b><br />
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Just as there is to be no development over the <b>Double Dry Dock</b>, nor should there be development over the <b>Basin</b>, a contemporaneous structure with the dry dock, as well as being the very origin of the dockyard.<br />
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The Tudor Dry Dock at Deptford of 1517 is the ancient predecessor of its modern equivalent just as the Tudor Basin is also the very first of its kind in the country. Shipbuilding <b>slipways</b> are evidenced at Deptford as early as 1420 and the present slipways should not therefore be built over. The 17th and 18th century <b>mast ponds</b> complete the dockyard engineering structures, and until independent expert engineering assessment of the future viability of all the above mentioned structures has taken place no permissions should be given for <i>preservation in situ</i> and development over their sites.<br />
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Archaeological reports state that the impact of development on these structures of national importance is severe. To the primary dockyard infrastructure may be added the <b>Navy Treasurers House</b>, a former royal residence of the Duke of York, and the <b>Officers Terrace</b>, until the understanding of the evolution of this early palace front terrace is complete.<br />
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Deptford Is... also calls for the reinstatement of the pre-1913 <b>Sayes Court Garden</b> to link up with the site of <b>Sayes Court Manor House</b>.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Plan of Sayes Court House and Garden by John Evelyn, 1653</span> <span style="font-size: x-small;">© British Library</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span>DEPTFORD IS...http://www.blogger.com/profile/15461323445196003952noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3273409189022605643.post-25212337960587142992013-09-25T23:06:00.001+01:002013-09-26T21:28:49.800+01:00London Open House<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The Master Shipwright's House on Deptford's waterfront dates
from 1513 and is a regular feature of London Open House. It is sandwiched
between the Convoys Wharf site (formerly the King's Yard of which the
building was a part) and Paynes & Borthwick Wharf (now a luxury
housing development).<br />
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Along with
plans, maps and photographs of Deptford Dockyard inside the house,
there were other attractions in the garden – which overlooks the river – in order to celebrate the founding of the Royal Dockyard exactly 500 years ago.<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold; text-shadow: none;"><a class="textlink link" href="http://www.buildthelenox.org/" target="_blank">Build The Lenox</a></span> had a strong presence, and on Saturday had invited a
re-enactment group from the Isle of Wight to come and fire their cannon
and muskets and demonstrate their sword skills all day. The cannon
could be heard next door at Convoys Wharf (which also had visitors - see below) and across the river. <br />
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The Lenox Project invited ship's carver <span style="font-weight: bold; text-shadow: none;"><a class="textlink link" href="http://www.maritimawoodcarving.co.uk/" target="_blank">Andy Peters</a></span> to display his work inside the house. Some enthusiastic visitors kept him talking for a long time.<br />
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In celebration of the Quincentenary the Lenox team is selling T-shirts and tote bags to raise funds for their campaign.<br />
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In addition, they held a Press Conference on Saturday morning,
featuring local actor Jim Conway playing Samuel Pepys, which resulted in
<b>BBC News</b> coming down to film and, because of their interest, also a 10-minute spot on <b>BBC London Radio</b> early in the morning before
the press conference. The conference was chaired by <span style="font-weight: bold; text-shadow: none;">Ben Willbond</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold; text-shadow: none;">Larry Rickard</span>, the actors from <span style="font-weight: bold; text-shadow: none;">Horrible Histories</span>. <span style="font-weight: bold; text-shadow: none;"><a class="textlink link" href="http://www.thisislocallondon.co.uk/news/10692555.Deptford_Build_the_Lenox_project_supported_by_Horrible_Histories_and_Samuel_Pepys_at_Convoys_Wharf/" target="_blank">See the coverage here</a></span>. The BBC News item went out on Monday morning and lunchtime, but is unfortunately not archived for viewing now on iPlayer.<br />
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Also on show in the garden was a model of John Evelyn's Sayes Court Garden, as part of a presentation by the <span style="font-weight: bold; text-shadow: none;"><a class="textlink link" href="http://www.sayescourtgarden.org.uk/" target="_blank">Sayes Court Garden project</a></span>.<br />
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Local artists Laura X Carlé, Sue Lawes and Hollie Paxton displayed artwork, Willi Richards showed a film about Deptford, and on Saturday evening, Up Projects held an art seminar to examine the part played by artists in regeneration, chaired by artist and educator Rebecca Beinart. That debate requires further discussion, since the Hutchison Whampoa application has a <b>Cultural Strategy</b> attached to it that feeds on Deptford's creative reputation that may not be able to survive the gentrification and high rents that may result from the developer's masterplan.<br />
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Meanwhile, next door on Convoys Wharf, developers <b>Hutchison Whampoa</b> also took part in London Open House on Saturday, and erected a marquee inside the historic Olympia Shed. There were a couple of additions to the display boards that were shown in their previous exhibition, and a new model, which showed much more of Deptford than the previous model, making the Convoys site appear much smaller. Spread out like this, the impact of the taller buildings and their surrounding masses was lessened. But not many were fooled.<br />
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The 48-storey tower at the front of the development was see-through, so that it almost disappeared in some views. The Olympia Shed was also dwarfed and hidden from many views. One display board invited visitors to suggest uses for the Olympia Shed (because the developers don't have any?). Some visitors were infuriated by the attitude of the developer's team, and returned to the Master Shipwright's House to show their support by purchasing <a href="http://www.buildthelenox.org/limited-edition-lenox-bags-and-deptford-500-t-shirts-for-sale/" target="_blank"><b>Deptford 500 T-shirts</b></a> from the Lenox team.<br />
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<b>A</b>lso on Saturday, <b>Henry VIII</b>, who had been lurking in the gardens of the Master Shipwright's House, took a wander over to the Convoy's site, where he found the Deptford Anchor being stored in the Olympia building. This was Bill Ellson in costume, resuming his role from the local campaign of 2005, <b>Convoys Opportunity</b>, which had presented a viable alternative plan for the site (as a cruise liner terminal) when the previous owner, Rupert Murdoch, was attempting to get planning to build almost as many luxury flats as the present owners.<br />
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On Sunday at the House, a highlight was the appearance of the <b>Deptford Dolphins</b>, who took to the water off Watergate steps for a swim in the high tide. They were subsequently invited into the house to wash off the Thames water, and stopped to pose next to Laura X Carlé's giant cardboard anchor.<br />
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<i>Abridged from an article on <a href="http://www.deptfordisforever.net/" target="_blank"><b>Deptford Is Forever</b></a> – a new website created for Deptford X Visual Arts Festival 2013. The theme of this year's Deptford X is "Art Makes People Powerful" so Deptford Is Forever is campaigning to bring back the Deptford Anchor and Save the Royal Dockyard.</i><br />
<br />DEPTFORD IS...http://www.blogger.com/profile/15461323445196003952noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3273409189022605643.post-34592758531307950252013-09-25T22:40:00.001+01:002013-09-25T22:40:13.354+01:00Thames Festival - 14th & 15th September 2013Build The Lenox brought their restored cannon to the Blue Ribbon Village on Potter's Fields, as part of the Thames Festival this year. They had a great pitch next to Tower Bridge, but the weekend weather was less than clement.<br />
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One of the highlights of the festival was on Sunday when a choir of 600 children sang a repertoire of songs inspired by the maritime history of the Thames, composed and conducted by local Deptford resident and school teacher Jonathan Pix (a great supporter of the Lenox Project and the work of Deptford Is...). </div>
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Many children's imaginations were captured by the restored cannon and the cannonball, but most thought Lenox skipper, Julian Kingston – dressed as John Shish master shipwright – was a pirate! </div>
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David models the Lenox Project's new merchandise...Go to the <b><a href="http://www.buildthelenox.org/limited-edition-lenox-bags-and-deptford-500-t-shirts-for-sale/" target="_blank">Build The Lenox</a></b> website to order yours!</div>
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<br />DEPTFORD IS...http://www.blogger.com/profile/15461323445196003952noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3273409189022605643.post-45824318927023310212013-09-25T22:37:00.000+01:002013-09-25T22:37:08.505+01:00The Great River Race, 7th September 2013Build The Lenox took part in the <a href="http://www.greatriverrace.co.uk/" target="_blank"><b>Great River Race</b></a> earlier in September. The<b> </b>team were not involved in the rowing race itself, but were invited to have a presence at the start and end of the race. The programme for the race had a large centre spread over six pages focusing on the history and future of Deptford Dockyard, with a special feature on the Lenox project.<br />
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We have extracted some points from the article by Sylvia Wicks here:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #134f5c;">"There are three realistic options for the future of our Royal Docks: replacement with high-rise blocks of flats; preservation as a heritage visitor site linked with Greenwich; or the reinstatement as an interactive heritage visitor site and working boatyard.</span><br />
<span style="color: #134f5c;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #134f5c;">"An application to build multiple high-rise blocks of luxury flats has been made to Lewisham Council. If it is approved, the docks will be lost forever. In future, Great River Race coxes might need to manage wind gusting between more tall buildings.</span><br />
<span style="color: #134f5c;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #134f5c;">"Maritime Greenwich, a World Heritage Site, is downstream from the Race start....It is The Royal Docks that authenticate Greenwich's historical Maritime significance....</span><br />
<span style="color: #134f5c;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #134f5c;">"World Heritage visitors are generally well educated, mostly well informed, and often well travelled...Visitors now want to see the real thing..."</span></blockquote>
She then goes on to make the case for the Lenox, and for the establishment of a Maritime Enterprise Zone. She makes the point that London needs a substantial, centrally located working boatyard, since only three remain in London. <span style="color: #134f5c;"> </span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #134f5c;">"It seems perverse to destroy a restorable, urgently needed dockyard in order to build blocks of flats on a flood plain....Reinstating the Royal Docks as an interactive Heritage attraction with a contemporary working boatyard would show visitors that the maritime facilities developed, and still available, at these Royal Docks over some 500 years, remain appropriate for use today."</span> </blockquote>
To read such advocacy was a great boost to the Lenox team. Meanwhile, at the start of the race on Millwall slip, opposite Convoys Wharf, the
Lenox skipper Julian Kingston was interviewed by various film crews in
his guise as John Shish, the master shipwright. <br />
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After the last rowers had left the starting point, the Lenox team joined the organisers, VIPs and a Dutch brass band aboard the committee boat which ran along side the rowers. </div>
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Further up river the Lenox team had the opportunity to cheer on the rowers from Deptford's <b><a href="http://www.ahoy.org.uk/" target="_blank">Ahoy Centre</a></b>, who had several rowing teams taking part. </div>
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A great reception for rowers at Richmond... </div>
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More pictures can be found on the <a href="http://www.buildthelenox.org/boats-galore-at-the-great-river-race/" target="_blank">Lenox website</a>.<br />
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Previously, in August, the Lenox Project took part in the South Bank's <b>Festival of Neighbourhood</b>, as one of the local community groups invited to participate in My Deptford. They were also met with great interest and support at that event. <a href="http://www.buildthelenox.org/my-deptford-festival-at-the-south-bank-features-build-the-lenox/" target="_blank">Read more here</a>.<br />
<br />DEPTFORD IS...http://www.blogger.com/profile/15461323445196003952noreply@blogger.com0