Save Our Skyline Fights On Against King Street Plan
Campaign group urges local people to sign petition and spread the word
Save Our Skyline, a concerned group of Hammersmith residents and amenity associations, is continuing its fight against the Council's proposed redevelopment of the Town Hall and surrounding land - and is urging other local people to join the campaign.
The group's latest newsletter to supporters says:
We regret to tell you that the Council has decided to press ahead with its scheme unchanged, despite the opposition of every single local residents’ association and amenity group, as well as a broad cross-section of the community.
The Council’s development partners, Grainger and Helical Bar, formally submitted their planning application on Friday, 29 October. The consultation period is open until 4 January 2011.
Selected plans and supporting documents are available to view on the Council’s website, via the Planning application search page here.
Enter the first of the reference numbers below to bring up a list of available documents. We are told that the full plans will also be available on request from Monday at the planning department at the Town Hall, during office hours (not including Friday afternoons).
The application reference numbers we have been given are as follows:
2010/03465/FUL
2010/03466/LBC (listed building consent)
2010/03467/CAC (conservation area consent)
Needless to say, images that reflect the real impact of what it proposed are very hard to find, but we have attached a few of the drawings which show you the scale of what is planned. Particularly from the south side (the river side), you can see how the existing Town Hall will be dwarfed.
A number of local groups, including Hammersmith Mall Residents Association (HAMRA) and the Hammersmith Society, in conjunction with SOS, are pooling their resources to retain Drivers Jonas Deloitte, the business advisory and property consulting firm, to review and oppose the planning application.
This of course costs money – an estimated £10,000 for the first stage. While fundraising has already raised over £3,000, clearly we still have some way to go. Any amount will help, small or large, so please read on to see how you can contribute. Donations sought to fund campaign SOS has already made a huge impact with next to no funding, thanks to the energy and commitment of members of the community who have given their time and expertise.
However, the Council have chosen not to listen, and for the next stage we will need the support of planning professionals and specialists. We promise that all funds collected will be used for the purpose of fighting this proposed redevelopment. In the happy but unlikely event that the application is withdrawn, any money left over will be donated to local charities.
We have established a Paypal button on the Save Our Skyline website through which you can donate to the campaign – click on the Donate the button at the bottom right-hand side of any page on the site. Alternatively, if you wish to make a direct donation, SOS’s bank details are as follows:
Bank branch: NatWest Marylebone High St
Account name: Save Our Skyline
Sort Code: 60 09 15
Account No: 73090174
It is more important than ever that we secure signatures for the petition. We already have nearly a thousand, but we need more, a lot more! If you haven’t signed already, please leave your name on the online petition page on the website. If you want to help, please ask your friends and neighbours to sign too, and keep spreading the word.
If you want to collect signatures in person, you can also download a paper form from the website Save Our Skyline and email us to arrange returning completed pages when you have a significant number of signatures, and in any event before the end of the year.
We will be organising a further public meeting in due course, once we have been able to assess the plans. We will keep you updated with the time and location. We really value your interest in the campaign, and we believe that it is essential that the community pulls together if we are to halt this utterly inappropriate and outsized development.
Save Our Skyline is an alliance of Hammersmith residents, associations and amenity groups - new and old. What we share is that we are proud of our local area, and want it to be the best it can be.
A quick reminder of what's planned: Hammersmith and Fulham Council, in conjunction with its development partners, is in the process of submitting a planning proposal which will:
- Demolish the 7-storey 1970s Town Hall Extension
- Demolish the 3-storey 1930s Cineworld cinema on King Street
- Demolish the 3-4 storey 1900s apartment blocks belonging to Thomas Pocklington Trust, and the 1950s Friends Meeting House
- Construct two new 14+ storey apartment blocks containing 320 luxury apartments - but no affordable housing
- Construct premises for Council offices and shops in two new buildings, up to 9 storeys, either side of the 1930s Town Hall
- Create a 2,000m2 supermarket (similar in size to Sainsbury's, King's Mall) - even though there are already 5 mid-size supermarkets within 500m of the site
- Develop a "new" public square between the 1930s Town Hall and King Street
- Construct a pedestrian bridge across the A4 to Furnivall Gardens and the river, with banks over 5m high
- Hammersmith Society
- Hammersmith and Fulham Historic Buildings Group
- HAMRA (Hammersmith Mall Residents Association)
- Ravenscourt Society
- Brackenbury Residents Association
- Ravenscourt Action Group
- Thomas Pocklington Trust
- Friends of Furnivall Gardens
- Fulham Society
- Ashchurch Residents Association
- Old Chiswick Protection Society
- Cambridge Grove & Leamore Street Residents Association
- Friends of Ravenscourt Park
- Cathnor Park Area Action Group
- St. Peter's Residents Association
- Westcroft Square Residents Association
- The London Parks and Gardens Trust
- West London River Group
- Digby Mansions Residents Association
November 11, 2010
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