YES! to Fairer Votes - Voter Registration Deadlines

On May 5th a referendum will be held on the Alternative Voting system. If passed, this new system would allow you to rank candidates in order of preference, rather than just selecting one person - in a process very similar to that used for the London Mayoral Election. It would mean:

• MPs working harder to earn - and keep - our support MPs would need to earn 50% of the vote to be sure of winning - whereas under the current system, MPs can be elected with just 1/3 of the vote in some areas.


• A bigger say on who your local MP is Ranking candidates gives you more say - if your favourite candidate doesn't win, you still have a voice.


• Tackling the 'jobs for life' culture Many MPs have 'safe seats' for life - this new process forces complacent politicians to sit up and listen, and reach out to the communities that they seek to represent.

Act Now to Make Sure you can Vote!

You can vote if you are over 18 and a British, Irish, qualifying Commonwealth or EU citizen who is resident in the UK. If you are not already registered to vote, you must do so before 14 April. You can register online here.

Postal voting is a great way to vote if you may find it difficult to get to a polling station on the 5th May - for example, if you are busy with work or away. If you are not already registered for a postal vote, you also need to do this before 14 April - you can register online here.

Planning Update - New Covent Garden Market

This weekend also saw a consultation meeting for the proposed redevelopment of New Covent Garden Market. Whilst the 57 acre site sits across the border in Wandsworth, the development is of big importance to local residents in Oval, be it for the 2,500 people employed in the market, or the impact of the development in services and transport in Vauxhall.

The proposals were originally consulted upon in November 2009, and since then the Covent Garden Market Authority has been further developing the plans. In total, 2,500 new homes are expected to be provided as part of the development.

Artist's impression of the site. Click to enlarge. Copyright CGMA.

The plans see the the construction of a new market on the site of the existing fruit and vegetable market; the existing flower market would be merged into this new market. This new market would address some of the key issues of the existing premises, replacing inflexible trading units with modular units, improving the traffic circulation and road layout, and developing a more efficient use of the land available. Solar panels would be included in the roof design of the new market, as would a water reclamation system. Development would be phased in such a way that market traders would only need to move one time, however market traders would likely need to fund re-fit costs as they move into the new premises.

Vehicle access to the market would continue to be via Nine Elms Lane, with emergency-only access to be provided via Pascal Street.

To fund the redevelopment of the market, the site of the existing flower market would be redeveloped as a residential-led site, additionally featuring a hotel and retail outlets. The plans for this site are being drawn up by Foster + Partners, and presents an Arcadian vision, with the development centred around the pedestrianised Linear Park (40-60m in width), with vehicular access restricted to underground service routes.

An artist's impression of the proposed linear park and housing. Click to enlarge. Copyright CGMA.

The old flower market site, combined with additional sites on Thessaly Road, Sleaford Street, and Crimsworth Road, would provide 2,500 homes, with an expected 15% proportion of affordable housing. The old flower market site would include a total of nine buildings, six of which would be 8-15 storeys in height, and three of which would be 25-46 storeys in height. This would mean that the tallest building on the site would be only fractionally shorter the the approved 50-storey tower at St. George Wharf.

The scheme would additionally include:

• Underground car and cycle parking, car club facilities, and service access.
• New shops, cafes, restaurants and commercial spaces.
• A new supermarket.
• Seating areas and play spaces within the publicly-accessible linear park.
• 250-room 'premium' hotel with additional provision of serviced apartments.
• "Community Facilities" (the exact nature of which is to be defined)
• New pedestrian links through the site, allowing improved connectivity between Wandsworth Road and Nine Elms Lane (currently the market acts as a barrier between these two roads).

The developer is proposing that only 15% of the development is affordable housing, on the basis that they will likely be expected to contribute to the cost of the proposed Northern Line Extension to Nine Elms and Battersea.

A copy of the consultation booklet can be downloaded from the New Covent Garden Market website.

The developers are expecting to submit plans for this significant development to Wandsworth Council this summer, with a planning decision planned for the end of this year. Whilst not in Oval ward, this development does have the potential to affect local residents, and therefore we are keen to hear your views on the proposals, either via email or in the comments box below.

Planning Update - Sainsbury's Nine Elms

This weekend, Sainsbury's presented revised plans for their site on Wandsworth Road, following an initial consultation late last year, which we reported on at the time.

The plans remain broadly unchanged, with a new 80,000 sq. ft. store replacing the existing 45,000 sq. ft. outlet, with residential accommodation built above the store, including the construction of three residential towers. Shops and cafes would also be provided at a ground level through the creation of additional retail space.

Since the last consultation, more details regarding the development have been fleshed out, including the provision of the following more detailed artist's impressions of the proposals:

Artist's impression of the proposed Sainsbury's development, from Wandsworth road. Two of the three proposed towers are shown here. Copyright Sainsbury's.

Artist's impression of the development's private residential gardens, which would be built above the proposed store. Copyright Sainsbury's.

In addition, some further details have been confirmed regarding the development:

• It will include 750 1-3 bed homes, of which approximately 20% will be either socially rented or shared ownership properties (subject to negotiation).
• One of the residential blocks has been removed from the original designs, in order to have more open space as part of the development; landscaped rooftop gardens, including an amphitheatre-style events area will be built above the store, however these facilities will be accessible to residents only.
• The proposed gym facilities would likely be residents-only.
• An after-school learning centre will be provided as part of the development.
• The possibility of providing a space for a GP practice is under evaluation.
• Residential blocks built above the store will be set back from Wandsworth Road, to reduce the risk of the road being 'dominated' by the structure, and to reduce the risk of properties on the nearby Wyvil Estate being overshadowed.
• Negotiation with Network Rail to open up the railway arches, as part of a proposed new public square by the railway line is ongoing.
• A new thoroughfare to New Covent Garden Market will be developed, and the proposals still provide accommodation for the proposed Nine Elms Northern Line Station, which would help alleviate peak-hour congestion at Vauxhall Station.
• None of the existing 300 Sainsbury's employees who currently work at the store will lose their jobs as part of this redevelopment; an additional 300 jobs are expected to be created by the development upon completion.
• The car park for the new store will have the same capacity as the existing car park.
• A replacement for the existing petrol station is not part of the current design, however Sainsbury's are seeking to find an alternative location nearby.

The latest version of the plans can be viewed online at http://www.sainsburys-nineelms.co.uk/ - do also let us know what you think of the plans, via the comments box below.

Tate South Lambeth Library - TV Appearance

The Tate South Lambeth Library will be featured in an upcoming edition of the BBC's Inside Out London, which will be discussing the importance of London's libraries.

The programme will air at 19:30 on Monday 7th March, and will be viewable via BBC iPlayer shortly after, via this link.

In addition, the Friends of Tate South Lambeth Library have launched a new website, which can be viewed here.

Vauxhall "Island Site" - Site Visit & Planning Committee Meeting

As mentioned in our previous article, Lambeth Council's Planning Applications Committee decided last month to hold a site visit with TfL at the Vauxhall "Island Site," in the centre of the Vauxhall Gyratory, to assess the impact of the proposed development by Kylun Ltd, which would see the construction of a 41-storey and a 32-storey tower at the site.

Artist's impression of the proposed development, copyright Squire and Partners.

The site visit has now been scheduled for Saturday 12th March 2011, and will meet at 10:15 outside Phoenix House, 10 Wandsworth Road, London SW8 2LL (the Lambeth Council office at the centre of St. George Wharf). The site visit is open to members of the public who may wish to attend.

In addition, the application will be considered at the next Planning Applications Committee meeting, on Tuesday 15th March 2011, at 19:00 in Room 8, Ground Floor, Lambeth Town Hall, Brixton Hill, SW2 1RW. A summary of the comments received by Planning Officers will be reported to the Committee, and members of the public are also welcome to attend. If you would like to address the meeting on this topic, you can do so by emailing the Governance and Democracy office at democracy@lambeth.gov.uk (Tel: 020 7926 2170), by 12:00 on Monday 14th March with the following information:

• Your name
• Whether you object to / support the application
• Your contact details
• The application you wish to talk about (10/02060/FUL)

The full plans can be viewed online on the Lambeth Council Planning Portal. Please also let us know your thoughts, either via email or the comments box below.

Ishbel Brown Speaks Out on Cuts to Lambeth Services

Ishbel Brown, Lib Dem Councillor for Oval, was due to speak last Wednesday in the debate on Lambeth Council's budget; however, following the occupation of the Council Chamber by protesters, Ishbel was unable to speak.

Ishbel's planned speech outlined options that the Council could have followed in order to lessen the severity of cuts to Lambeth's front-line services, and is reprinted below:

I am impressed that Lambeth Council has managed to accumulate so many reserves (almost £120 million) in the last four years.

One may be fooled into thinking that they were terribly prudent, and had full control of the financial situation; until, of course, you scrape away the veneer and realize the millions that have been wasted.

I want to talk specifically about the reserves. Firstly an interesting concept, but a truth nonetheless, is that one saves to spend. I believe the ‘invest to save’ scheme (containing £7 million) was established some years ago, and yet there are no significant Labour proposals to use this money – they have had 3 years to come up with ways to invest this money to generate future savings, and yet nearly all of the money still remains stashed away in a bank.

Additionally, I would like to know exactly what the earmarked reserves are earmarked for – what is more important – squirreling away money, or putting, say, lollipop people on the street to protect children crossing dangerous roads?

This Council is not a bank. Our job is to spend the resources in a way that best serve the people of Lambeth, not have millions sitting in accounts doing nothing but earning negligible interest. In the current climate, it is both immoral and uneconomic to be hoarding such cash.

As stated, we save to spend at a later (usually rainy) date – has this wet day not arrived?

It is not acceptable to hit the vulnerable and those in need when the Council is awash with money held in reserves. We propose to use £10m (a mere 8% of the total) to mitigate the cuts – a proposal the S151 officer says is legal and I think it is fair.

Instead of spending these reserves, this Labour administration has chosen to cut front line services whilst stating publicly that the coalition government is to blame. In my short time in this chamber, I am yet to hear Labour take responsibility for any of their actions – instead bleating that it is someone else’s fault.

Sainsbury's and Covent Garden Market Consultations

Next weekend sees two further consultations on proposed developments in the local area;

Sainsbury's will be holding a consultation on the proposed redevelopment of their Nine Elms store, on Wandsworth Road. This follows a consultation session late last year, and presents revised plans with improved roof gardens and enhancements to the pedestrian environment.

Artist's impression of the proposed new store. Copyright Sainsbury's.

The consultation meeting will be held at the Nine Elms store on Wandsworth Road, at the following times:

• Friday 4th March, 14:00 - 20:00
• Saturday 5th March, 10:00 - 16:00

The plans can also be viewed online at http://www.sainsburys-nineelms.co.uk/.

The Covent Garden Market Authority will also be holding a consultation event this weekend, to present their latest plans for the redevelopment of the New Covent Garden Market. The redevelopment will see the construction of a new market specialising in fresh produce - food, flowers and plants, with the construction of new homes, shops, offices and open spaces.

Artist's impression, Copyright Covent Garden Market Authority.

The consultation meeting will be held at the Yvonne Carr Community Centre at 2 Thessaly Road, at the following times:

• Thursday 3rd March, 16:00 - 20:00
• Friday 4th March, 16:00 - 20:00
• Saturday 5th March, 10:00 - 17:00

Do also let us know what you think of these proposals, either by email or via the comments box below.

£9m Council Tax Black Hole

A Freedom of Information request submitted by the BBC has revealed that Labour-run Lambeth Council has failed to collect a mammoth £9 million in Council Tax just in the 2009/10 financial year.

At a time when Labour has approved savage cuts to services in Lambeth, it is galling for the borough's taxpayers that such poor collection rates exist, with Lambeth being the worst out of the 32 London Boroughs. Such cuts to services could have been lessened if Lambeth was able to effectively collect the taxes that it levies.

In addition, the news came as Lib Dems announced their proposed alternative budget, which would have saved many front-line services, by identifying savings and efficiencies elsewhere in the budget. For example, selling Phoenix House, a Lambeth Council office in Vauxhall, could raise millions of pounds - the block was worth a staggering £24.5m when it was bought in 2004. We also proposed savings to reduce costs, such as a reduction on spending on publicity and advertising by £900,000 and a move to Open Source software, saving £500,000 - with both of these sensible proposals rejected by Labour.

With our financially sound proposals, which were approved by Lambeth Council's finance officers, Labour Councillors had a real alternative to protect some of Lambeth's most vulnerable when they voted through massive cuts to the Council's services last week - making the decisions taken by Labour last week all the more infuriating for residents.

£100m of Decent Homes Funding Announced for Lambeth

The government has announced the funds that will be given to councils to help improve the standard of housing, bringing them up to the Decent Homes Standard.

As part of the £2.1bn proposals, Lambeth will be receiving over £100m over the next four years to help clear the backlog of repairs - this is more money than received by any other area in the country, recognising the need to improve the standard of housing in our area.

In addition, Lib Dem MPs have successfully lobbied the government to drop the proposal to reduce housing benefit for long-term jobless; Bermondsey MP Simon Hughes fought especially hard for this, and the Lib Dems were able to win this vital concession, ensuring that the long term unemployed who are struggling to find work are not punished again and placed at risk of homelessness.

Update on Vauxhall "Island Site" Proposals

As mentioned in our article earlier this month, the proposal for the construction of two towers by Kylun Ltd on the Vauxhall "Island Site" at the centre of the gyratory was discussed by Lambeth's Planning Applications Committee on 15th February.

The proposed development at Vauxhall. Copyright Squire and Partners.

The meeting was specifically to discuss the pedestrian environment; Lib Dem Councillor Brian Palmer, who sits on the committee, spoke out about the necessity of having a pedestrian crossing at Wandsworth Road, between the development and St George Wharf, to ensure that the gyratory is "tamed" and to protect the safety of the residents. Councillor Palmer also spoke out in favour of greater Section 106 contributions from the developer, to help improve existing green space in the local area.

The meeting resolved that a crossing is needed across Wandsworth Road in order for the development to become a suitable location for family homes; a decision on the application as a whole will be made at a later date, following a site visit for the Committee with a TfL Officer in attendance.