Willesden wants its voice heard on regeneration

Willesden Green residents, concerned about the lack of consultation over the Willesden Green Library Centre redevelopment  have formed the Keep Willesden Green campaign. They aim to persuade  Brent Council to pause the development to allow residents  a 'real voice' in the far-reaching changes envisaged for the site.

These include the demolition of the historical Old Willesden Library and the likely closure of the Willesden Bookshop. The campaigners are also concerned about the loss of the open space in front of the current library and bookshop and its replacement by a 'canyon' open space between the proposed flats and the back of the new Cultural Centre which will lack light and be hidden from the High Road.

A limited consultation is being held by the developers Linden Homes/Galliford Try with one to one sessions (by appointment) tomorrow and Tuesday at Willesden Green Library. In addition the developers promise that:

Plans for the Cultural Centre, and for the associated residential development, will be displayed at a two-day public exhibition to be held in the existing library on Friday 9th March (2pm-7.30pm) and Saturday 10th March (10am-2pm). Plans will also be displayed here following the event.

However, the developers do not say what will happen to the consultation feedback and whether it will be considered by Brent Council. It is likely that this will just tweak a 'done deal' so residents will need to tell the developers that we want the development to be paused so that we can have a thorough going real consultation that will start from what residents want, rather than what developers think they need or what will be most profitable.

The questionable status of this 'consultation' can be seen by this statement from Brent Council Democratic Services when I asked about presenting the Willesden Bookshop petition:

As you know the Executive has already taken decisions on this matter and so there are no current plans for the Executive to consider the matter further.  It is now for the Planning Committee to consider the planning application 

The Galliford Try website is notable for the number of pages it has which still await content and appears to have been hastily put together as a result of public disquiet. Pages on Community Benefits, Cultural Centre Design and Residential Design are all blank so residents will have little concrete to comment on and no assurance that their comments will have any impact.. You can see the website for yourself HERE

Kate Spence, co-chair of Keep Willesden Green said:

Local residents are shocked by the Council's plans to sell off public amenity to private property developers. The proposals intend to give us a large and dense private housing development with an inadequate Cultural Centre and council offices squeezed into the Conservation Area at the front. This land is council property and belongs to the council tax payers and stake holders in the area. None of us want to see this land sold off in exchange for an inadequate Cultural Centre. Our public amenity and heritage assets are being eroded, they are not being improved. As locals we do not see this as an acceptable proposal.

Willesden Green campaign gathers strength

More than 30 people volunteered for Save Willesden Green's committee last night and quickly got down to the work of organising different aspects of the campaign. They aim to stop the development to give time for local people to have a say in the proposals, and time for the Council to reconsider their plans.

Only 12 people were involved in initial consultations and there are only 30 spaces available in Galliford Try's two consultations days on February 28th and 29th.

Anger is building at what residents see as a private 'done deal' between the Council and developers and committee volunteers included a broad range of local people including shop keepers, parents, teachers and residents.

Petitions to save the old Victorian Willesden Library from demolition and to relocate the Willesden Bookshop in the proposed Cultural Centre each look likely to gains more than 1,000 signatures.  A leaflet has been produced outlining the issues and is being distributed widely, aided by more than £350 which was collected in a whip round last night.

The vast majority of people taking part have not been involved politically before but have been galvanised by what they see as their exclusion from major decisions about their neighbourhood.

Willesden Bookshop: The council "don't know what they've got"

From the Bookseller LINK

Willesden Bookshop is searching for new premises after Brent council plans to develop the Willesden Green Library Centre, where it is based, into a "brand-new multi-million pound cultural centre" led to the termination of its tenancy.

Brent said the new "Willesden Green Cultural Centre" will be a state of the art cultural centre and library that will act as the main hub for council services and community activity in the south of the borough. WGCC is to be delivered "at no capital cost to taxpayers thanks to a deal struck between Brent Council and Galliford Try, one of the UK's leading construction companies, to build homes for market sale at the back of the site in return for the centre," the council said.

Work on the new centre is expected to start in September with a completion date of  spring 2014. The existing Willesden Green library building is set to be demolished as part of the process and there will not be a place for the Willesden Bookshop in the new development.

Steve Adams, owner of 25-year-old bookshop, which has a strong children's section including a specialism in multicultural books, said the council had terminated the shop's lease but given it a temporary extension to August. "We are looking at local alternatives but we are fairly gloomy because local rents are amazingly high," he said. "The trade is in a state of crisis and it is very hard to be confident at looking at a new 15-year lease on commercial premises when you are probably looking at a declining market."

Adams said there was strong local opposition to the move, with over 1,000 signatures to a petition asking for the bookshop to be retained. "That's from local customers, we've been very touched," he said.

A council spokesperson said: "The council is aiming to deliver the new cultural centre at no cost to the taxpayer and it is not financially viable for the bookshop to [be] given a preferential rent there. We recognise it has many valued customers and is an important asset to Willesden Green, so we will provide as much support and assistance as possible to help them find alternative premises. Discussions about this have already begun."

Brent resident and literary agent Geraldine Cooke said: "The mealy-mouthed message from the council is an absolute disgrace. They have never begun to realise that Willesden Bookshop is providing a service to the community, not only because of the cultural diversity of its stock and the tremendous knowledge of its staff but because it also supplies most of the educational texts to all the schools, nurseries, colleges and libraries of this borough. They don't know what they've got."

Residents' representations to January 16th Executive

These are the Minutes of  residents' representations made at the January 16th Brent Executive Meeting

Dilwyn Chambers spoke as a local resident on the Willesden Green Redevelopment Project.  Dilywn Chambers expressed concern about an apparent lack of details regarding responses from consultation in the report.  He felt that the art gallery, bookshop and Brent Irish Advisory Service (BIAS) had been given due notice that there would be no space for them at the new site as opposed to being properly consulted and he suggested that neither library staff nor users had been consulted about the proposals.  The Executive heard that the Valued Customer Panel set up in February 2011 was yet to meet.   Dilywn Chambers contested the accuracy of paragraph 4.14 in the report.

Martin Francis, speaking as a local resident, addressed the Executive over his concern about there being no provision for the Willesden Green bookshop in the proposals.  He commented that the bookshop stocked a wide range of books and provided an important educational role in the local community, including providing discount books for local schools.  The Executive heard that the bookshop had been praised in The Guardian newspaper.  Martin Francis stated that although the report had mentioned that there was no space available for the bookshop at the new site, it had not given the reasons as to why and he felt that the bookshop would provide a welcome attraction for the new site and provide community cohesion.  Furthermore, the bookshop was up to date with rent payments.  Martin Francis concluded by asserting that the council should be championing successful local businesses such as the bookshop and he requested that space for it be provided.

Philip Bromberg addressed the Executive speaking as a representative of Brent SOS libraries.  He stated that Brent SOS libraries had sent a letter to the Head of Libraries suggesting that Cricklewood and Kensal Rise libraries be kept open during the redevelopment of the Willesden Green site, which would be at no cost to the council and provide an ideal solution, whilst Brent SOS libraries would be willing to work with the council on this matter.  Philip Bromberg felt that there was not sufficient information for a decision on the proposed interim service delivery to be decided and further information from library staff was required.  Furthermore, the costings for Grange Road and the second additional temporary location were not known, whilst the locations for alternative sites for study spaces remained unspecified.  He asked that any decision be deferred before this information was known and to keep Crickewood and Kensal Rise libraries open during the Willesden Green redevelopment project.

Edward Lazarus, a resident of Cricklewood, also addressed the Executive.  He began by stating that the closure of Cricklewood and Neasden libraries, along with the redevelopment of Willesden Green library, meant that some 200 study spaces had been lost and that this meant that effectively only ten study spaces remained to cover a large area.  These study spaces played a vital role for some school children, particularly those in deprived areas who may come from overcrowded homes and the loss of the spaces meant they would have no other place to go and impact upon the education of those who needed it most.  Edward Lazarus asked that Cricklewood Library re-open for two years whilst the Willesden Green Redevelopment Project was being undertaken.

Councillor John (Chair and Leader of the Council) thanked Dilywn Chambers, Martin Francis, Philip Bromberg and Edward Lazarus for their contributions.

Notes of February 16th Public Meeting

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Passionate residents take on Brent Council's destructive plans

Many thanks to BNCTV

Support from the Brent and Kilburn Times

Brent and Kilburn Times Editorial 16.2.12