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Now battle for the park
• THE fear of Talacre residents has been realised.
The executive environment sub-group voted on Thursday to agree to major changes at Prince of Wales Road and to stop up Dalby Street (Plans for seven-storey flats await road handover, June 19.)
It means this busy public highway and the only road access to the popular Talacre Community Sports Centre will effectively be handed over to private developers. Only the hope that mayor Boris Johnson will intervene stops local residents from being totally dismayed.
Shamefully, there was little hesitation from the four executives concerned as they praised the developers’ inept scheme as “creative” and “innovative”. How the developers managed to convince four councillors that they could fit a gallon into a pint pot is indeed a creative feat and hard to believe.
The next battle on the agenda for local people is to protect their cherished park. This could be accomplished easily and cheaply by the council granting a Town Green status to Talacre Gardens as per the Commons Act 2006.
A vote is to take place. The question is, will our councillors have the courage to vote for what is in the best interest of local residents or will they again follow slavishly the advice of Camden officers?
These unelected officers have already proven to be enemy No 1 of the people around here. In 2004, they granted planning permission for the Dalby Street developers to overspill their restaurant scheme into the park.
In 2006, the officers gave permission to the same developers to drive a road across our park, slicing it in two.
And then again, we learned that the developers were intending to use some one per cent of Talacre Gardens for a parking area.
There is a breakdown of trust between our council and their officials and the public. We see our council leaders as destructive, dismissive of our interests and needs.
Only a “yes” vote for the Town Green could help a seriously damaged relationship.
CELINE LA FRENIERE
Co-ordinator
Talacre Gardens Neighbourhood Watch, NW5
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