East Dulwich Garden Centre - possibly replaced with flats

[Bellenden Belle]

KalamityKel Wrote:

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> BB... this thread is for the Garden Centre.

> Discussing the Library... mayb good for a new

> thread? no?

KK, If you followed the thread - my comments reflected the previous three posts which began with Simon's observation: So the Council's lease on the Grove Vale library premises is nearing the end. Place your bets now.....another bookies or estate agents.

If the garden centre is making way for a new library following the lease on the site of the current library expiring, then I think they are actually part of the same discussion.

[Sue]

PeckhamRose Wrote:

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> Would not M&S be a threat to the East Dulwich Deli

> though?

> And why think that a library would necessarily

> increase pedestrian traffic?

>

> WOuld you / do you all use your local libraries?

> I hardly ever do. I went to one a few weeks ago -

> I think I mentioned it - and asked if they had a

> Chekov play book and the Librarian told me that in

> the whole of Southwark Libraries there is not one

> Chekov book.

>

> Good computer system tho....

>

> If people and the market economy needs more flats

> then more flats it has to be.

> Personally I think it should be a big post office

> with forecourt parking, but - you know - it's not

> about what we WANT.

xxxxx

You can order books and CDs etc from the library, even if they aren't in the library system at the moment. Admittedly this can take some time, but they just bought a book for me to borrow which I'd have had to pay twenty quid for.

Sorry admin, I know this is off topic, won't do it again :)

[Bellenden Belle]

If that space became an M&S, a post office, whatever and had commercial usage - that would be it, it would be lost as a resource for the community forever. If the library thrives - then fantastic, if it doesn't at least there will be some discussion in the future about what would best benefit the area as a whole. Some people are very dismissive of "community" facilities which really disheartens me - Thatcher's children, eh?

I think the future challenge for developments is exactly coming up with solutions such as this - where the private and public sectors collaborate.

Looking at the work of successful community builders such as Coin Street (who own the Oxo Tower on the South Bank) can give us a real insight into making these spaces work. For example I would equally support having commercial facilities, such as a sushi restaurant, or a Waitrose, or such like in the space if the housing was then social housing. Personally I like that idea even more than the private housing/ public facility option we are being offered.

[danrees]

TJS Wrote:

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> Please someone tell me if they are going to do

> this they are going to also revamp ED

> station.....although i doubt it....as the place is

> an absolute mess.

Mate that is a thread in itself. Although I think they have cleaned up the litter in the past couple of weeks, it just spreads so quickly...

As for that useless man who occasionally sells railway tickets...

[jonsuissy]

danrees Wrote:

>

> As for that useless man who occasionally sells

> railway tickets...

What do you mean by this.

He's a good guy who does his job very well, even gets put into hospital after being beaten up for it.

How dare you say that

[Sue]

jonsuissy Wrote:

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> danrees Wrote:

> >

> > As for that useless man who occasionally sells

> > railway tickets...

>

> What do you mean by this.

> He's a good guy who does his job very well, even

> gets put into hospital after being beaten up for

> it.

> How dare you say that

xxxxxxx

I don't know if there is more than one person working there, but I have had problems trying to buy tickets there in the past - on more than one occasion - and once even had to go to Denmark Hill station to buy them because he refused to sell me what I wanted and just told me I couldn't have them !!!! I've heard of people having off days, but that was ridiculous !!!!

[Jeremy]

They do sometimes have stand-ins working there. The main guy there is generally fine, felt awful when I heard about the attack a couple of years ago.

[Nero]

I asked a man at the garden centre about its possible demise. He went away to ask and came back to tell me that it would be at least two years before the place would close. Nero

[Muttley]

What was there before the Garden Centre? I seem to remember that the station building was bigger, and the Garden Centre took over part of it, but maybe that was just the Garden Centre expanding. Late 1980s I'd guess.

[James Barber]

Tuesday 22 January the main Planning Committee approved a scheme on this site for 22 flats 1,2 and 3 bedroom flats PLUS a new Grove Vale library double the size of the current one. My expectation would be the new library opening 6 days a week, hosting adult education, supporting school visits and lots more study desks for kids doing home work.

I have been talking with the applicants and council officers for two years about such a scheme and am delighted my idea for a new Grove Vale community library now has planning permission. All going well it will open January 2010.

As a user of the current Dulwich Garden Centre I will be sad to see it go. But for several years they have been talking with developers about schemes - so it seems ineviatable and this is the best possible scheme for this end of Grove Vale.

The alternatives would have involved something like a Tesco metro or Sainsbury's local sucking the remaining life out of Grove Vale businesses.

[Curmudgeon]

22 flats on that site??? ::o ...

really? I will almost bet there will be traffic and parking issues

I suppose none of them are affordable housing either .. in fact I'm fairly certain I heard that there aren't any

[Jeremy]

It does seem like a lot of flats for quite a small space. But I don't think that 22 flats will introduce traffic issues on there own, there are WAY more than 22 homes just over the road in Hayes Grove. And new flats often come with allocated parking these days, don't they?

[Muttley]

22 flats, right next to the station - they'll be snapped up in no time. Just look at GV15....oh dear.

[Moos]

JBarber, thanks for this. Can you tell us when the garden centre is likely to close, and when the library is likely to open?

[James Barber]

Several questions that I can answer.

The lease for the new Grove Vale Library will be 125 years at a peppercorn rent of ?100 pa. A tiny fraction of what is currently being paid. I anticipate that the savings will enable the library to increase from being open 4 days a week to 6 days per week.

It will take 6 months to finalise all the zillions of details that now have to be resolved post Planning Application approval. It would then take 18 months to build the site and a further 1-3 months to fit out the library.

[fonson]

SLP article

[Muttley]

Thanks for posting the article, the building looks promising.

[TJS]

This image actually looks pretty good....

[Jeremy]

Yeah, it looks much nicer than I expected.

[MelbourneGr]

That picture makes ED look tropical ;-).

Shame they didn't add the tyre shop over the road into it. Would have made it more realistic.

22 Flats - I hope they provide ample parking. IF they don't, it's us on Melbourne Grove who will suffer. Like we don't get bummed already.

Somebody pass me some cream...

[snorky]

/ turns on sarcasm

YOu want to live in a "vibrant" up n coming areas with a wide variety of shops and bars like teh ED , but you dont want anyone else to move into your manor ?

How about a wall around the precious ED ? Works in Israel doesnt it .

Oh, and as to the comment earlier about Grove vale / dodgy charachters / undesirable shops - why make such a pantomime of it - just come out with what you really think - You are talking about Black Kids & shops that Black residents use.

Now how can we keep them out of our precious up n coming ED ?

/turns off sarcasm

[Nero]

Not entirely fair, Snorky. The library, the shoe shop, the music shop, the kids' outfitters, the DIY shop are all white owned and used mainly, I reckon, by white folk, and are all a bit down at heel. Are you projecting your thoughts, while shamelessly taking a higher moral ground than that one the ones you criticise? Discuss! Nero

[KalamityKel]

Why are you making this discussion a skin colour issue?

Please note I say skin colour as quite clearly "race" would be an inappropriate term as those who appear a particular colour tend not to originate from a particular part of the world these days.

The image for the proposed building does look good. I wonder how much of a resemblance the final construction will have tho ;-)

[snorky]

Nero Wrote:

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> Not entirely fair, Snorky. The library, the shoe

> shop, the music shop, the kids' outfitters, the

> DIY shop are all white owned and used mainly, I

> reckon, by white folk, and are all a bit down at

> heel. Are you projecting your thoughts, while

> shamelessly taking a higher moral ground than that

> one the ones you criticise? Discuss! Nero

I know, But I was a bit petrubed by the tione of the earlier post - and your are quite right in what you say - a few replies dismissed the idea of a Grove vale to GG roundabout ghetto fairly quickly.

Down at heel, but survive and serve a purpose - not everyone can afford to cane their disposable income on cookwank and tat from the plush emporia of LL. Reginald Perrin would have been proud to see his "Grot" shops principle being so widely embraced

ON a personal level - Its interesting / funny to see white middle class commuters visibly recoil and adopt a 1000 yd stare when they have to pass a couple of black yoof hanging outside the Maxin chicken place on GV - I think the GV area does seem to be a bit of a no mans land for mans, that sadly has to be negotiated if they wish to reach the security of their ED Homes

[KalamityKel]

Snorky you really do come out with some right rubbish at times :p