We have added a new page on major local developments with a short briefing note about each. At the moment, most are within the Vauxhall Nine Elms Battersea Opportunity Area but we will try and include other developments as we learn more. When you see all of the planned developments gathered together in this way you realise the scale of what is being planned. It is is breath taking.
IMPACT is one of the oldest local resident associations. They cover the Claylands Rd, Trigon Rd, Meadow Rd, Palfrey Place and Ashmole St. This evening (28/6/2011) they held their AGM at the ‘Chambers’ in St Marks Church, Kennington.
The main topic was the proposed Northern Line Extension and not least the proposed ventilation shafts which would certainly have an adverse impact on the area. Tim Whitehead (Treasury Holdings) and Simon Pope (Ardent) were invited by Impact and they gave an updated presentation on the NLE. The wisdom of consulting again on the same 4 options when 3 had been rejected on technical grounds was again questioned. Numerous action points were requested of Tim/Simon including the following improvements to the website;
- A counter to show how many people had submitted comments/consultation forms
- A list of all alternative ideas that had been put forward
- Notes of consultation meetings so that residents could check the correct message was being taken back
- More detailed plans so that residents could see exactly which properties were being affected
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- Sunday Market at New Covent Garden
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- Sunday Market – clothing stall
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- Sunday Market-shoe stall
I haven’t been to the New Covent Garden Sunday Market for a while so it was a pleasure to see it thriving today. The old favourites are still there, clothing, second hand tools, food, music, toy, mobile phone stalls etc. Many of the Sunday Market traders are professionals but there are a few amateurs keeping the spirit of car boot sales alive.
What caught my attention this time was the increasing numbers of flat screens on sale. Relatively modern technology finding its way to the market even more quickly it seems. Also notable were the number of bicycles on sale many more than in the past it seems (presumably more of us using bikes these days). Thinking of bikes, it’s not a good idea to bring one to the market as trying to wheeling one through crowds is not very sensible. Today, though I was just passing through. It was the first time I had used the short cut through the Sainsbury car park. I was a little shocked at the inconsiderate bollard placed in the gate way. Expecting parents to lift pushchairs over to get through a gate doesn’t seem right. I also note that Sainsburys don’t open until 12:00 on Sundays presumably to avoid car park trouble. I wouldn’t want to encourage car use but letting this car park remain fallow on Sunday mornings is is not necessarily good for the community or the environment as traffic is diverted around the Vauxhall gyratory.
If the Northern Line Extension (NLE) is built, there will be six stops from Battersea Power Station to the City (Bank Station). This should take about 15 minutes including the change at Kennington (NLE will be on the Charing Cross Branch). In an experiment for the Oval Partnership, our resident blogger, yours truly, cycled from Battersea Dogs Home to the City (just over London Bridge). It took 16 minutes obeying the Highway code (stopping at red lights!). Once the time taken to walk to and from the station and waiting for trains is taken into account it is likely that cyling would be much faster.
Marsh Produce at the Oval Farmers Market
Desibox at Oval Farmers Market
- Squid and Pear at the Oval Farmers Market
There were a few new stalls at the market today that I hadn’t seen before. It was nice to see the additional stalls which add to the variety.
Marsh Produce had a wide range of sausages and meats.
Desibox specialises in Indian food. Keep an eye on this one as he has already appeared on television!
Squid and Pear the name of the business and their nicknames introduced the delights of rabbit with their take-away-menu.
The City & Guilds of London Art School have been putting on their annual graduate art show.
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- City & Guilds of London Art School
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- Katie and Anna – 1st class honours graduates
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- Emma at reception
Katie Hetherington Bakewell and Anna Jung Seo have recently graduated with 1st class honours. The neighbourhood does not have a local art supplies shop but the school does stock a small range of supplies. Ask for Emma or whoever is on reception and they may be able to assist.
Chris Elder, manager of the Oval Farmers Market, has arranged a Summer Pudding/Dessert Competition at the market on 9th July. Entrants have to get some ingredients from the market during the morning from 9:00. The entries will be judged at 13:30.
The winner will get £50 to spend at the market. If practical, the winning receipe will be produced by the ‘Cake Hole’ stall as a summer special.
[Update: 8 July 2011 Just been told...EVENT POSTPONED]
Vauxhall Square - VNEB model
Vauxhall Square is a £250M development. Although it’s not the highest profile local development this will probably deliver more practical benefits to the community. In particular, the six screen cinema will be a welcome addition to the area as will the ‘innovative walkway’ which will improve pedestrian links to the river Can’t wait to see the detail but we will have to wait until 2016 to see the results [Update: Developers, CLS Holdings, have now withdrawn this proposal]
For some reason Vauxhall Square’s apparent website http://www.vauxhallsquare.co.uk/ redirected to a hosting site when I checked it but I’ll leave the link there in case something meaningful appears [Update: It is now working] The picture shows a model of the Vauxhall Square development and how it fits with the rest of VNEB. http://www.vauxhallandkennington.org.uk/news.shtml -has some much better pictures and an overview of major local developments.
The Vauxhall development includes 400 residential departments in two towers over 40 storeys. The planned 80,000 square feet of retail is the equivalent of around 100 small shops. There will be restaurants, bars, 200,000 square feet of offices, a 300 bed hotel and 240 bed student housing. No mention of the number of car parking spaces though.
Vauxhall Park fair ice cream and band
Friends of Vauxhall Park Fair - HACAN stall
Friends of Vauxhall Park Summer Fair
Some of us may be too old for bouncy castles and donkey rides but the Friends of Vauxhall Park always put on a good show at their summer fair. The HACAN stall caught my attention with their very effective poster showing the number of planes passing a local house in an hour. It is mindful of the blitz.
The Wildlife Trust stall rep pointed out a peregrine falcons nest in the nearby BT building (see BT press release). The Wyvil Primary School band were strumming their stuff as were a brass band. It was a pleasure to be at a fair that wasn’t swamped with too many food stalls.
Particularly amusing were the remote control bin and traffic cones that weaved their way amongst the visitors sounding horns along the way.
Richard Ball of Furniture Aid
Furniture Aid South Thames, a local charity providing furniture to those in need, is having to move out of the Offley Works at the end of this month after 17 years. The site is to be re-developed and the charity has yet to find a new home. Southwark have offered some underground garages near Kennington Station but the site would need major development.
Richard Ball (pictured here on the roof) has worked for the charity since 1997. As a local man he remembers taking his son to the adjacent Belgrave Childrens Hospital (shown in background).
Furniture Aid Open Day
Furniture Aid supplies a wide range of furniture and house hold items to those in need who have been referrred to them. It is not open to the general public but once a year it does open its doors. This will be the last open day at the current site.
