Croydon Council CEO Bans Press

The Croydon Guardian reports that Croydon Council chief executive, Jon Rouse, banned the press from a public meeting last night, lest he be subjected to scrutiny.

The ban is somewhat "ironic" given that the press had been invited by the deputy chairman of the forum to attend what it had described as a public meeting at Croydon Voluntary Action resource centre in London Road, where the council chief was answering questions about the regeneration of West Croydon.

Now you know why Croydon continues to decay; the council have absolutely no intention of regenerating it, and don't want the press to report as such!

The Wind Atop Altitude 25

Courtesy of Andrew Pelling, here is the sound of the wind atop Altitude 25.

As he notes, high rise buildings are not the answer to Croydon's housing needs. Additionally aside from being windy at the top, these high rise buildings actually exacerbate the wind at street level.

Lansdowne Road & Dingwall Road Roundabout Improvements

Those of you who care about the centre of Croydon and want to see the rot stopped, would be well advised to participate in the council's consultation over Lansdowne Road & Dingwall Road Roundabout Improvements:

"From July 2013 with the opening of the new northern entrance to East Croydon Station, Lansdowne Road will be the vital pedestrian and cycle connection between East Croydon Station, the major south London public transport Interchange and Croydon's retail core (the Whitgift Centre, North End and Centrale). The proposed improvement works will provide a safer more attractive route to handle the predicted 30% of the people who currently use East Croydon Station to access these parts of the town. 

These works are part of the wider Connected Croydon programme of public realm enhancements. The project will deliver a lasting legacy for Croydon Metropolitan Centre over the next three years.

The works will also connect to a proposed new surface level pedestrian crossing on Wellesley Road that will connect Lansdowne Road and the main eastern entrance of the Whitgift Centre by 2014. This will further strengthen the role of Lansdowne Road as a direct pedestrian link between the new East Croydon footbridge and Croydon’s major commercial and retail core. 

The main objectives of these works are as follows:

• To transform Lansdowne Road between Wellesley Road and Dingwall Road (including Dingwall Road roundabout) into a pedestrian friendly space that still accommodates vehicles

• To strengthen the sense of arrival to an important London destination by creating an inviting public space

• To set a high quality benchmark for public realm improvements in Croydon Metropolitan Centre

• To improve connectivity and increase capacity for pedestrians and cyclists between Lansdowne Road and the new East Croydon footbridge via Lansdowne Walk whilst maintaining its role as a vehicular route

• To preserve existing bus movement and timing, and allow for future increase in capacity

• Improve public transport interchange in the vicinity of the western entrance to the new East Croydon Footbridge including a new taxi rank." 

Despite whatever comes of this plan, it is a pity that Dingwall Road will remain a barren wasteland that looks both hideous and dangerous until other issues are addressed.

The consultation runs until 30 November, and details can be downloaded via this link Lansdowne Road & Dingwall Road Roundabout Improvements.

Comments should be submitted by email to guy.protheroe@croydon.gov.uk or by post to the address below by the 30 November 2012.

Contact Details

Guy Protheroe

Telephone	020 8726 6000 ext: 62105
Email	guy.protheroe@croydon.gov.uk
Address	Capital Delivery Hub, 18th floor Taberner House, Park Lane, Croydon CR9 1JT

Croydon Council Wasting Your Money!

Why does Croydon need another Equality Officer, costing the taxpayers £38K per annum, when it already employs five (and Bromley doesn't employ any)?

Croydon council, wasting your money!

Allders In Administration Again!

In January 2005 I wrote:

"Allders, once Croydon's flagship store, is due to go into administration in the next 24 hours.

That is bad news for the staff and pensioners as, aside from the jobs that may be lost, there is a rumour in the City of a £17M black hole in the pension fund.

The Standard reports that the company that owns the Allders chain, Minerva, only acquired Allders to get its hands on the flagship Croydon site.

What does this mean for the centre of Croydon I wonder? "

Some five and half years later, and Allders is yet again in administration.

The Telegraph reports:

"The department store, the third biggest in the UK, today appointed Duff & Phelps as administrator, blaming a sales decline on “the well-publicised economic difficulties facing the UK”. 300 jobs have been put on the line. 

The collapse comes in the year that the department store was celebrating its 150th anniversary. It remains open for trading."

What now for the centre of Croydon?

The Kiss of Death For Croydon

Oh dear, on top of the creeping decay and blight eroding the centre of Croydon, it seems that the reputation of Croydon will be further sullied if this project ever gets airtime.

The Guardian reports that:

"A new reality TV show set to rival TOWIE is being made in Croydon. 

Reality show Surrey Heights, based in Croydon, will be holding casting sessions for individuals, groups and couples at Shooshh nightclub next month."

Pass the sickbag someone!

Castles In The Air - Another "Plan" For The Whitgift Centre

PropertyWeek reports that Hammerson has signed an exclusivity agreement which will enable it to buy a stake in the Whitgift Centre in Croydon.

This of course places a question mark over Westfield’s plans for the centre, and adds to the confusion as to what exactly is going on with the shopping centre.

In November 2011 Westfield announced that it had secured an exclusive agreement with the shopping centre’s freeholder, the Whitgift Trust, to explore options to redevelop the mall. However, the shopping centre’s other stakeholders had not been consulted and agreed to sell a share of their stake to Hammerson.

"Plans" for the redevelopment of the Whitgift shopping centre have been argued about for years, eg I wrote this in February 2005:

"Minerva is funding Croydon Council's fight against the Whitgift shopping centre expansion plans proposed by Minerva's rivals, who own the Whitgift.

Minerva is paying the six figure costs of legal fees incurred by the council, at a planning inquiry into the expansion of the Whitgift shopping centre.

The owners of Whitgift are appealing against the council's decision not to approve plans to extend the shopping centre. The extension is called Bishops Court 2.

The council is reported to back the rival project called Park Place, which is proposed by Minerva."

Frankly, based on the failures of previous schemes, I don't think there will be an redevelopment of the Whitgift anytime soon. 

Nestle To Leave Croydon

Nestle has announced that it will move its UK headquarters, housing 840 staff, from Croydon to Gatwick by the end of 2012.

Nestle has been based in Croydon for over 40 years.

It had been seeking a new head office in Croydon for "several years", but it had proved "very difficult". Croydon Council said that Nestle had chosen a type of office accommodation that it could not match, this is ironic given how much empty office space there appears to be in Croydon.