Cllr Richard Thomas

Marmora Man Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I have also alerted a local councillor by > directing him to this thread - suggest as many as > feel strongly about this vandalism do the same - > their e-mail addresses are on the Local Info page > of the forum. I have not idea why this has happenned but I've asked the Director of Environment to explain. Richard

Six days after the London elections, it has been confirmed that confirmed that all eight post offices in Southwark that were under threat will get the chop - including Melbourne Grove. You can't help but wonder at the cynicism of the timing of this announcement. more on my blog

the immediate neighbours will certainly be pleased. http://cllrrthomas.wordpress.com/2008/04/08/caffe-nero-to-stay-but-air-con-units-to-go/ richard

It worth saying that this closure comes just a few years after the last round of cuts saw the closure of the Post Office in Crystal Palace Road. Consultation will continue until April 2nd. You can help the campaign by signing the petition outside Melbourne Grove Post Office or go to http://campaigns.libdems.org.uk/savesouthwarkpostoffices. In addition, you can make their views known to Anita Turner, Network Development Manager, c/o National Consultation Team, FREEPOST CONSULTATION TEAM, or email her at: [email protected]. more on my blog www.richardthomas.org.uk

As Mark points out, the reason we decided to do the survey is that we get lots of complaints about parking. So we thought we would ask people what they think. I fail to see the problem in that. The reaction of some posts on the forum seem rather over the top! I am pleased to say that most people we spoke to were pleased we were asking them their views and many many people did complete the survey. we will be reporting back on the results in due course. richard

I bumped in to blinder999 at the weekend whilst delivering leaflets. he told me the sad bnews that Hans Monderman has died http://www.guardian.co.uk/obituaries/story/0,,2251163,00.html

PeckhamRose Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Sir Councillor ELECTED person - why did you not > address my own suggestion on the previous page, Sorry - I did mean to respond to that. I am really keen on this approach. I visited holland to look at these ideas in practice and have listened to Hans Mondiman - the guru of this approach - talk, he was inspirational. The two areas in which I managed to progress this approach when I lead on transport was in building Southwark's first Home Zone in Sutherland Square and on the Walworth Road - where we have got rid of guard railing and introduced shared surfaces - to an extent that I have not seen anywhere elese in London or the UK on a main road. You ask us to be brave - well, I took quite a lot of flack for that project - and no doubt mentioning it now will invite some more! Both those examples were 'special projects' with very specific one-off funding streams. Integrating the ideas more widely is more tricky, not least because it is often very expensive and because our fuding streams from TfL are very restrictive. But some principles can be applied more widely - like trying to use less paint and avoiding use of guard railing, street signs are now screwed to walls - not installed on posts. Barry Rd is very straight and that is why people speed because the sight lines are so clear. I am not sure that simply taking away the signs and lines would be enough to create the ambiguity that approach relies upon, I think you'd have to spend a lot of cash That's whay I suggested cameras there.

The issue with speed is not just about the cause of the crash but the impact the crash then has. Hit by a car travellling at 40mph, nine out of ten children will be killed. At 20mph its one in ten.

I agree that policiing of speed offences would be a very good step forward. For reasons I don't understand the police don't want to enforce 20mph zones. There is evidence that illegal drivers are more likely to commit offences. But there is also evidence that the vast majority of road users speed too - around 80% admit to speeding in surveys.

There are very few alternatives to humps available to councils. Fore example, the police won't enforce traffic offences in 20mph zones. The best hope is average speed cameras which track a vehice's speed over a distance between two points and fines anyone who covers the ground too quickly. They are being trialled in Camden I think. I am pushing for Southwark too be allowed to install them too. Any suggestions as to where? I think Barry Road might be a good place to start.

they count the shop units and record the use of each one. At the hearing Caffe Nero said it was 56% A1 (retail), Southwark said it was 54%. Either way its above 50%.

The East Dulwich councillors have sent in objections to this application. The grounds for the refusal are severely estricted by Tessa Jowell's Gambling Act. In the past you had to prove there was a need for such a new facility. Now you have to show either that the owner is crooked or that there are vulnerable people nearby to prevent it. Richard

James Barber and I both attended the hearing and gave evidence. I've put a post about the hearing on my blog. http://cllrrthomas.wordpress.com/2008/01/29/caffe-nero-planning-appeal-update/ richard

if the car was red it sounds as if it might have been a community warden. There is a point in emailing your 'lovely councillors' who will of course do our best to help - if you don''t we can't.... richard

James Barber is the expert on all this but according to his blog www.jamesbarber.org.uk it will be twice as big as the existing library.

The choice wasn't between a garden centre and a library. The garden centre is going anyway. The choice was between a block of flats with a shop or a block of flats with a library. The exisiting library is too small and the lease will run out quite soon so this improves a local community facility and puts it on a long term footing.

The development - and with it the proposed new library - received planning permission last night. more here Richard

is this string about the council budget or about me? just for the record - my decision was entirely personal and made in the interests of my family. I understand that some people are cynical about everything politicians say but it happens to be the truth. I will be leaving my executive post but will remain an East Dulwich councillor. My resignation statement - which can be read here - talks about East Dulwich (rather than Nunhead) because I am an East Duwlich councillor. I will remain in post until the council has passed its budget on 20th February. To answer the original point of this string. The money to refurbish Dulwich Baths is not directly affected by the budget situation as this is funded from capital - the council's own money - and not from the government's grant. But the money spent on running the leisure centre will have to be considered along with alll other areas of council expenditure. The budget situation that the government has put us in is very serious. The grant the Council receives from the government makes up around 70% of the Council?s budget. Every year, the amount of money we receive rises, but this year it will go up by 2.2% which is less than the rate of inflation. This means an effective shortfall of ?4.8 million, even if the Council only spends exactly the same ? which it can?t do. The real terms cuts become even more severe in the next two years. Increasing population, increasing demands from that population and increasing costs of meeting those demands mean that the Council can?t automatically restrict spending. In fact, demand (and therefore cost) for social care services is increasing and government charges for waste disposal are also on the rise. To compound this, the formula which is used to allocate government grant is flawed. Population estimates which the Office of National Statistics has said are incorrect are still used in the calculation of the grant. In short Southwark's population is increasing but this is not recognised in the grant allocation. So there is a serious budget gap. While some of this can be made up by improving efficiency (e.g spending less on communications, managing staff budgets more effectively), we do need to make some really difficult choices about the Council?s priorities. We are working closely with Council Officers to try to minimise cuts to front line services. We are also lobbying the government for an improved grant settlement.

AllforNun Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I think the Pulse shut for nearly 2 years while > the council argued over how to pay for the > repairs. The contracts that the executive signed > off on (just a few years previous) where as > watertight as the pool itself. They then tried to > blackmail central government/lottery for money, > and were in no uncertain terms rebuffed. Then they > cancelled their plans for an ED oppulency grant > and found the money suddenly to do the repairs. > Meanwhile the kids from the surrounding areas > spent 2 of their summer holidays with F all pool ! the pool was badly built so it leaked. we found the money to fix it. and then we fixed it. what would you have preferred us to do?

similarly, I also cycle and use a trailer for the shopping and a tandem with the kids. Bollards and railings on cycle paths do make life difficult - but you've got to remember why there were put there in the first place.It is usually to stop people driving motorbikes and cars where there should not be. I worked for the Natioanl Cylcing organisation CTC and its still one of the most difficult things to achieve - to design barriers that keep motorbikes out but still allow disabled access, tandems, trailers and unconventional bikes through.

I can't remeber when the library was first shut on Wednesdays but now its open! Seven days a week - 66 hours instead of 55. More here.

sorry I missed you at the jumble sale - I might bump into you in Riverside.... Adventure playground update: the project consists of a new adventure centre, a MUGA (multi use games area, pedestrian and disabled access, cycle storage, landscaping and new adventure equipment. Project starts on 19th November and should be complete in May 2008. richard

AllforNun Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Sorry when you say you like it does this infer > that you have been actually using it ? > > The play area is actually very small and rather > secluded, this may offer a clue as to why it is > less busy ? Do you think it is adequate for the > catchment area that it should be catering for ? > Instead of just defending a position go into the > community and have a chat to people. Nunhead, is > just the other side of the Rye ! > > Anyway nice to see you coming on line. yes, i use it. clearly making it bigger would be an improvement but I think its quite good and it is easier to find an empty swing there than in dulwich. Once the cafe opens that may change things though. the main point i was trying to make is that where money has been invested, there has been attempt to cater for other ages and needs.

just an opinion but I quite like the play area. its less busy and more shady than the Dulwich version. Not withstanding that I thought it worth pointing out that the skate park right next door is new and the adventure playground is also being re-done so there has been effort to provide a mix of different facilities for different ages and interests.

Ed, you beat me to it - I was just putting the news on my blog You've got a good point about the maintenance though. After investing all the money in the peckham pulse, there was no investment strategy agreed by councillors to keep it in good condition. We need to do things differently this time.