almost peckham

The P13 is now running along the recently closed Avondale Rise.

The road is open as stated above but diversion notices are still fixed to the stops for the P13. Completely unscientific, I realise, but I have yet to see a P13 come through today on the few times I have walked up and down the road.

AS of a couple of hours ago the hole had been filled in and people had moved the cones aside and driving through in both directions. Take care though as some of the signs and triffic light equipment is sill up.

The 'road closed' signs are still up but people have moved the cones blocking the part of the road that isnt being worked on and driving through.

St. Christopher's have a list online of what they will and won't take but it doesn't really tally with what they will and won't take when you turn up with stuff.

work being done on it now. I'll post later if i'm the first to see it back open.

It's a fair point, Anotherpaul. "The club", the entity that is evoking such strong feelings is an amalgam of people. The club is constituted by people: their work, support, feelings, and kinship. It is not constituted by architecture. People make places, not buildings. On this view 'the club' could plausibly play football at any number of spaces, it is not limited to the proposition on the table. This is evidenced by 'the club' playing at Tooting but it could be elsewhere.

Ben. I am not sure if you have deliberately misinterpreted my post. My point was that the astroturf has been heavily used over recent months thus making clear its amenity value. I said nothing of the stadium being underused - of course it hasn't been available to use - just like everything else that has been shut. How you then groundlessly extapolate that I might campaign for the closure of libraries and community centres is baffling and offensive. I would like you to retract this false claim. It is one of the reasons some prefer not to use real names - in case someone makes baseless claims that might spread. At the moment Meadow have everyone where they want them. They have set up a false bi-partisan, binary situation of splitting the greater population into the two camps of for the club and for the open space with implied counter views of wanting the demise of the other. This, in my experience is not true. Most want the continued survival of the club and the continued existence of the open space. But Meadow have everyone over a barrel, fighting each other. I do not believe DHFC should be 'killed off'. I joined many of the protests to show support for the club over the last few years. My view was, and still is the club should be supported to remain in and redevelop the existing ground without further encroachment on open ground and without the building of a six storey block. At the least, I think the decision should be postponed and for the following reason: No-one yet knows if a return to mass attended, closely populated events will safe in the post COVID landscape. We are still waiting for expert (and yes I do listen to read and otherwise engage with the views of experts) opinion to shape how our behaviour might have to change. We don't yet know if 4000 people can stand, shout, be together safely, and it might be foolish to build a stadium until we know one way or the other.

savedulwichhamlet Over the last few months the astroturf has been been 'fit for purpose' for playing football, volleyball, kids riding bikes, for dog walkers, cricket matches, running laps, circuit training, bmx tricks, and just being in an open space with a wider horizon than might be seen from a window. Broader, less controlled, possibly more human usage than a 'state of the art sports centre' . It has been vital.

Thank you Tom for clarifying that, in summary, DHFC has a long history of poor governance and inept decision making from within including most recently and leading to the current situation allowing itself to be taken over by Meadow. The solution as DHFC now see it then is for them to be bailed out, to wall off and restrict access to a piece of publicly owned land (MOL). To repeat, DHFC sold their football ground to meadow - what on earth did you think was going to happen? Your full and eloquent post sets out DHFC's self-made plight very well but says nothing to those people who use the space every day for a whole range of reasons from kids learning to ride bikes to dog walkers to say nothing of the environmental impact on the many species of birds and animals in the area. Yes, there are some other places for people to find the space for games playing, as you suggest. But why should local residents have to travel to use an open space? By the same measure there are also other places to play a football match once every two weeks, as recent history has shown. Maybe trying to think of other clubs who want something like the same thing as DHFC as something other than 'loathed rivals' might help here. Does DHFC still have the highest player wage-bill in their league and the league above? This is a genuine question, I think it was true a season or two ago. Long term control of outgoings might have been a good way of ameliorating any reduction in receipts.

The astroturf is in poor condition (not derelict) because DHFC failed to maintain it. It is far from certain that the club's future will be secure with this development - there is a very real threat Meadow will reneg on building the stadium. Do you really trust a company that tried by law to stop DHFC using its own name? There was a lot of support on the planning portal for the development, true - from people in West Wickham, Croydon, Penge, Carlisle - lots of people persuaded by articles on sites like pitcheroo who know little or nothing about the local context. Most people who live close to or use Greendale were against it.

One thing the council could have done would have been to have recognised and argued for the retention of public open space. Particularly open space near residents with little access to gardens. Instead, Southwark council seem to be on the verge of gifting Greendale fields to an overseas property developer to buid on for private profit. The road-width path behind the football ground will become a narrow path again once building works commences making social distancing next to impossible for those children and parents walking to school along this popular route. Utter hypocrisy.

Labour council gifts public land to overseas property company for private profit. James. It is clear that collectively, you and your colleagues place a higher priority on monetary profit and private ownership over the public and collective benefit and enjoyment of amenity space. To say nothing of the degradation of the environment.

I think some side extensions include a void to avoid rerouting the sewage/waste pipes. Have a look where your manhole cover is.

Seems someone has rung the police while I was dithering and have shut him down. Council's noise team are currently and ongoingly suspended if anyone wants to know.