I set up the Gofundme page on Sunday morning, and since then the total that has been donated is over £6,100.
Having spoken to Michael again at lunchtime today to get the money deposited into his account, he told me how amazing he thought the response had been and he was really touched by the comments that everyone has left on the site.
It doesn’t look like they’ll be able to open again this week, but hopefully this money will make sure that they are able to get back to being the much loved stop-off that everyone clearly loves so much.
I’d like to add how nice it has been from my point of view, seeing the comments coming in for them too. I should however have set the page up NOT to have sent me an email every time there was a donation or comment – my phone didn’t stop pinging all day on Sunday. A nice problem to have.”
The fundraising page is still open if you would like to contribute. Anyone with any information on the break-in should call 101 or use the Metropolitan Police website. We’ll bring you news on when the cafe will reopen as soon as we have it.
Residents in Atlas and Derrick Gardens say the new development would loom over their homes
London mayor Sadiq Khan has thrown out plans to build 771 homes off Anchor & Hope Lane – the first major scheme to come forward as part of the redevelopment of Charlton Riverside – at a meeting at City Hall today.
Greenwich Council rejected the plans last year, saying it was against the masterplan for the riverside land. But within weeks Khan “called in” the proposal to decide himself. Local councillors and residents fear that approval will set a precedent for the riverside, which has no major infrastructure improvements planned, to be developed with tower blocks rather than family housing. Many thought Khan would simply rubber-stamp the scheme.
The mayor said the site was easily accessible, and said council planning committees needed to bear in mind London’s housing crisis.
But he told the audience to cheers: “In my view, this scheme is not of sufficient design quality, and the layout and massing leads to a poor residential environment and poor quality public realm.”
He also voiced concerns on the effects on local businesses.
Neighbours and local businesses had lined up to reject the scheme, and Khan praised the contribution of residents, calling them “the opposite of NIMBYs”.
The chair of the Charlton Central Residents Association, Jodie Coughlan, laid into Rockwell’s lack of consultation – something highlighted by Khan in his verdict.
“This is a serious insult to the intelligence of the public, and our confidence in the GLA as a planning authority,” she told the mayor. “For something of this scale, an intelligent approach should have been taken from the beginning. Many residents are saying ‘why bother?’ … CCRA would strongly urge the mayor to reject this application and send Rockwell back to engage with the community.”
Squeeze singer Glenn Tilbrook – whose recording studio is next to the site – also spoke, to say he had been “locked out” of meetings between Rockwell and the Greater London Authority since 2015.
Rockwell’s revised scheme will be examined by City Hall, not Greenwich Council
All 11 councillors on Greenwich’s planning board rejected the scheme, with chair Sarah Merrill declaring: “This application in no way resembles the spirit of the Charlton Riverside masterplan, in terms of height, massing and design. It’s reminiscent of Stalingrad.” Other objectors include local MP Matt Pennycook, who says the scheme remains too dense and should be cut from a maximum of 10 storeys to six storeys, while it also needs more family-sized homes. He also calls the design “sterile and monotonous”, and says there needs to be a cut in car parking.
Rockwell wants to build 771 homes, with the possibility of 165 homes (21.4%) for “affordable rent” and 127 (16.4%) for shared ownership with a City Hall grant.
Residents, who believe the development would tower over the cul-de-sacs at Atlas and Derrick Gardens, have accused Rockwell have circulating misleading images of the scheme.
You can see a recording of the hearing, which began at 2pm and lasted two hours, on the City Hall website. Brief updates on what happened follow…
Live updates (most recent first) – refresh for updates
5.05pm. And that’s that – a surprising verdict, but not too much of a shock to those who heard the residents’ testimony this afternoon.
4.50pm — DECISION REJECTED
Khan says he called in the population to give it more scrutiny and that London has a booming population and needs housing. “In Greenwich alone, I’m told there are 17,000 households on the waiting list. We must optimise the development of underused sites while protecting the green belt… this needs to be recognised at a local level by council planning committees.” He criticises Rockwell’s lack of consultation, but says council planning committees need to bear London’s needs in mind. He says the site is clearly accessible… but then rejects it to cheers from the public gallery, citing a poor quality environment, poor quality public realm. Blimey.
4.49pm Khan is back in the chamber.
4.04pm Smith says Rockwell has had interest from three providers to take on the “affordable” housing. Khan is now going to retire to consider his decision. “Hopefully it’ll be today when I come back,” he says.
4.03pm Khan questions Greg Smith on Rockwell’s lack of consultation. He claims to have attended five different consultations. “We feel we’ve done everything we should be doing, and we’ve tried to do more.” Asked engagement with the riverside industries, Smith says Rockwell has agreed to send construction materials by river rather than road. Questioned about Glenn Tilbrook’s objections, Smith says Rockwell did engage, but Tilbrook responds but he did not get sufficient details in the answers given to him. “There is nothing in the reports about sound going into my premises, and I’ve asked.”
3.57pm Sadiq Khan commends planning chair Sarah Merrill for her engagement with residents, adding that “it is an example for other councils to follow…. the residents are “the opposite of NIMBYs”. But he asks her: “If an applicant reduces height and density, do you appreciate that it results in fewer homes and affordable homes?” She responds that Greenwich could make up the numbers because Charlton Riverside as a whole is such a land area. “If we’re given the leverage, we can deliver the affordable homes that would be lost here. We believe that this is housing at any costs… and we need to spread the housing along the vast area of riverside,” she said. Asked about Rockwell’s plan for businesses: “Our view is it’ll provably be Costa Coffee for want of a better word. We would have liked to have seen a greater mix with low-scale manufacturing and industry, not just retail space.” Senior planning officer Victoria Geoghegan backs her up.
3.51pm Now Greg Smith of GVA, Rockwell’s consultants says the site “has excellent transport links”, and says existing industrial occupiers will be helped to move locally. Rachel Huff of Simpson Huff architects promises a “vibrant, mixed-use” development, and outlines some of the changes to the scheme since the mayor called it in. It will “create a new working, thriving, living neighbourhood,” she says.
3.45pm London Assembly member Len Duvall speaks. “This site is simply too small for the number of homes planned on it, I’ve had people come to me and say the previous scheme that went to the council was better.”
3.42pm Glenn Tilbrook of Squeeze thanks the mayor for his over-60s Oyster card, then says Rockwell and the GLA have spent 16 hours in meetings since 2015. “We’ve been locked out of them,” he said. “The model of the proposed development was a model of misrepresentation – existing buildings were depicted as being larger than they are, I wish my studio was a three storey building.” He adds: “The GLA have ignored us and swept our concerns away.” He says he faces a loss of income from studio rental and a loss of access for his tour bus. “We thank Rockwell for the offer of soundproofing, but this needs to be dealt with by independent professionals answerable to us.” He adds: “Where’s the hope and where’s the love in this development?”, calling the scheme “a kick in the teeth for residents”.
3.37pm David Gayther of Charlton Together, a network of community groups, says the community feels “let down” by the GLA in calling it in. “Mr Mayor, you’ve said over and over that Londoners should develop their own communities, but nowhere in London is doing that better than Charlton. We have better relations than ever with our own council.”
3.33pm Phil Connolly of the Atlas and Derrick Gardens Residents Association. “I have Parkinsons disease, so I’ve joined the movers and shakers before I met you,” he jokes. “The planners have lost the plot a little – they think significance is related to quantity and scale,” he says, pointing out that Rockwell hasn’t monitored for PM2.5 pollution. “We have 13 deaths a year in our council ward… the Rockwell development is set to make that worse.” He adds: “You’re our mayor – we elected you. We beg you not to leave you in the bands of Rockwell, getting darker and colder, and we don’t want the pollution Rockwell is threatening us with.”
3.27pm Carol Kenna of the Charlton Society: “We believe the masterplan as it stands at the moment is a very good starting point for the development of the riverside area. On the contrary, at our first resident with Rockwell, the developers were offered sweeties – to tick a box if we wanted a creche. We were told we couldn’t discuss principles, and we feel we are not being treated that way. We were given two days notice of the latest consultation – two, two-hour slots at the weekend. The model was inaccurate, we were told by one representative it was in scale, another that it wasn’t in scale, and they had a public disagreement.” She says she is “puzzled” that the GLA has called it in based on inadequate Greenwich housing figures – but the GLA did not respond to a query on why. Kenna would like to know where Khan stands since he has recently called for community-led development.
3.23pm Jodie Coughlan from the Charlton Central Residents Association criticises Rockwell’s approach to consultation – four hours right at the end of the consultation period, with a 3D model produced right at the end. “This is a serious insult to the intelligence of the public, and our confidence in the GLA as a planning authority,” she says. “For something of this scale, an intelligent approach should have been taken from the beginning. Many residents are saying ‘why bother?’… CCRA would strongly urge the mayor to reject this application and send Rockwell back to engage with the community.”
3.18pm Local resident Yann Leclerc thanks Rockwell for listening to community concerns – but says the scheme still isn’t good enough. “The play street is a lovely idea, but in reality I doubt it will be used very much,” saying it will not be an attractive setting and will be used as an access route for industry. “How many children will actually use it?,” he says, pointing out the lack of family housing and the overshadowing.
3.15pm Phil Aust of Day Aggregates, representing the riverside industry. He talks about the importance of the aggregate industry to London – a third of the capital’s building industry’s needs comes through the Greenwich/Charlton wharves. This development itself will require “tens of thousands aggregates” – but he says current plans will mean that this will come by road, not by river.
3.12pm “The scheme is a complete travesty of that masterplan… this is housing at any price, and its legacy will be that it is a social mistake,” Merrill says to applause.
3.07pm Greenwich planning chair Sarah Merrill says that the leader of council was “not comfortable” with it, and says it “in no way” reflects the Charlton masterplan, which took six years and £1 million of work. She cites overdevelopment, adding that the new plan compounds this; points out the reduced level of family housing; and the effect on business neighbours such as Squeeze’s recording studio. “We don’t want Squeeze squeezed out,” she says.
3.06pm Provisions are in place for a “potential bus transit route”, while Rockwell will pay £2.1m for a new west-east access road towards Warspite Road. “Although there are planned public transport improvements, these will not be delivered before this is determined,” the City Hall officer says, justifying the large amount of car parking on the site. There will be £830,000 for bus services (presumably the “bus transit route”).
3.04pm Dealing with Glenn Tilbrook’s criticism that the scheme will damage his use of his recording studio, the City Hall officer this there will be access for a tour bus, heavy works will be taking place at agreed times and Rockwell has agreed put in soundproofing to protect the studio if needed.
2.55pm Residents’ windows on Atlas and Derrick Gardens will, at most, experience a “minor adverse impact”, apart from one which will be in a room where there is another window that isn’t affected. So that’s alright then.
2.52pm. We are being shown views of the scheme from Atlas and Derrick Gardens. Many locals say these visualisations aren’t accurate.
2.48pm. A City Hall planning officer has been talking. His delivery isn’t too exciting, but to sum up, he says the scheme is in “sustainable location” and complies with London Plan policies – the London Plan is the mayor’s masterplan for all of the capital. Those who struggles to take buses to North Greenwich this morning may beg to differ…
2.43pm. WE’RE BACK! Thank you to reader Paul Chapman for suggesting randomly hitting the “play” button on the webcast. Let’s hope City Hall’s planning decision-making is more sound than its IT.
2.16pm There is currently no sound on the City Hall webcast, rendering this attempt at a live blog rather pointless. If the sound reappears, we will try to resume it, otherwise, we will catch up with the result after it is announced. Apologies.
2.05pm. Still waiting to start. It’s fair to say that many local decision-makers are expecting Khan to approve the scheme. Greenwich & Woolwich MP Matt Pennycook has already written to Communities Secretary James Brokenshire today to ask him to consider calling in the scheme to be decided by a planning inspector if Khan gives it the green light today.
Route 486 was used for 4.5 million journeys last financial year
Transport for London has confirmed plans to reduce the frequency of bus route 486, which links Charlton with North Greenwich station.
From Saturday 23 February, the service – which is frequently full to standing and suffers from buses terminating early – will run every 10 minutes during weekday daytimes and every 12 minutes on Saturdays, instead of every eight minutes as now.
However, TfL has told The Charlton Champion that it will increase frequencies on busier weekday morning journeys.
TfL confirmed full details about the changes on Tuesday afternoon:
Introduction of two journeys during Monday to Friday morning peak hours from Bexleyheath to North Greenwich, increasing the frequency from 7.5 to 8 buses per hour during the busiest hour in the morning peak
Reduction of Monday to Friday daytime frequency from every 8 minutes to every 10 minutes (7.5 to 6 buses per hour)
Reduction of Saturday daytime frequency from every 8 minutes to every 12 minutes (7.5 to 5 buses per hour)
Reduction of Sunday and evening frequency from every 12 minutes to every 15 minutes (5 to 4 buses per hour)
There is no change to the weekend–only night service at this time
The news, first revealed in a bus enthusiasts’ newsletter published last week, comes just days before the east Greenwich Ikea opens on the route, with a planning agreement compelling to the furniture giant to advise customers to take public transport.
A proposal to scrap the weekend overnight service on the route – which meets Night Tube trains on the Jubilee Line – is on hold, the London Omnibus Traction Society reported.
Financial problems at TfL
There has been no consultation on the cut, which is part of a new contract for bus company Go-Ahead London to run the service. Currently, the route – between North Greenwich station and Bexleyheath shopping centre – is run with 16 vehicles at peak times. The new contract specifies just 14 buses.
In 2017/18 the route saw 4.5m passengers – the most since its inception in 2001. While North Greenwich station is the major destination for many passengers, it is also well used for the Charlton retail parks, Charlton station and Queen Elizabeth Hospital. It also serves the massive new St Mary Magdalene school on Greenwich Peninsula.
The frequency cut is the latest in a number of planned cutbacks to local bus services. Last year, this website revealed plans to trim route 53 back from Whitehall to Lambeth North, while route 180 is due to be rerouted from Lewisham to North Greenwich when Crossrail opens, slashing the number of buses between Woolwich and Greenwich town centres. Route 472, another North Greenwich service, is also due to suffer a service reduction at the same time.
TfL’s director of public transport service planning, Geoff Hobbs, told The Charlton Champion on Monday: “We constantly review and reorganise the bus network to modernise bus travel in London. This makes sure that Londoners’ fares are efficiently used with buses serving areas they are needed most and reduces bus-on-bus congestion.
“The changes to the frequency of route 486 reflect its varied demand during different parts of the day and week. We are increasing frequencies to the busiest weekday morning journeys to respond to the higher demand and are reducing its frequency when there is less demand. This will ensure our network is efficiently run and that buses are running where they are needed most.”
“We are aware of new developments in the area and are always reviewing our services to adapt to changes and, if needed, we will make further changes accordingly.“
TfL is currently facing a financial crisis on three fronts. It is primarily caused by the loss of its grant, signed off by previous mayor Boris Johnson, but has also lost some income because of current mayor Sadiq Khan’s partial fare freeze and the ongoing delay in finishing Crossrail.
The cafe is closed and police have been on site, with locals turning up to help. Anyone with any information should call 101 or use the Metropolitan Police website. If you can offer practical help in the days ahead – we understand a plumber is particularly needed today – then drop by the cafe.
The Alexandra Players will perform Sir Alan Ayckbourn’s Drowning on Dry Land over four nights this February, Wednesday 20th to Saturday 23rd.
About the play
Charlie Conrad is a celebrity. His talent? He hasn’t got one; the nation took him to their hearts for very publicly being unable to do anything competently. One fateful day, however, Charlie meets Marsha, and his marriage and career go into freefall… Drowning on Dry Land examines the current obsession with celebrity for its own sake and chillingly but hilariously demonstrates how celebrities can be destroyed as quickly as they are made.
Booking
Tickets cost £9 (£8 for concessions) and can be booked online via the Alexandra Players’ website, by email, or by phone: 07867 627 987.
Fairview’s development was unpopular enough with neighbours before work started (photo: Neil Clasper)
Greenwich Council has threatened the developer behind 330 new homes off Victoria Way with an unlimited fine after neighbours complained work was taking place outside permitted hours.
Fairview, whose controversial development was approved by councillors a year ago, is only allowed to carry out work between 8am and 6pm on weekdays and 8am to 1pm on Saturdays, but neighbours complained to the council about work taking place outside these hours.
A Section 60 notice was served on Fairview last month warning it that it would face a fine if work continued outside permitted hours.
Greenwich’s cabinet member for community safety, Jackie Smith, told The Charlton Champion: “The council served, Fairview, the building contractor working on 40 Victoria Way, Charlton, with a Section 60 notice in December 2018, following complaints from residents that it had been working outside of the hours permitted by its planning consent.
“The notice restricts the times that noisy works can be carried out. The council is in contact with Fairview to encourage it to take all reasonable steps to limit the impact on surrounding residents but if it is found to have contravened its notice the council has the power to take legal action.
“Concerned residents can report unreasonable or out of hours, noisy work from a construction site to the council by calling 020 8921 8921. We log all calls as this enables us to both assess the extent and pattern of activity and provides supporting evidence should enforcement action be necessary.”
They’ll be meeting by the Old Cottage Cafe at 10am and birdwatching for an hour; they recommend you wear something warm and, if you have them, bring your own binoculars.
The Big Garden Birdwatch has taken place nationally since 1979 and helps the RSPB to understand the changing populations of birds and other wildlife across the country.
The Charlton Champion 