This vile example of the worst of '60's architecture has just opened in front of beautiful Holland Park.
Residents are horrifed.
But it has a champion in that arbiter of good taste, Cllr Danny Boys Moylan.
Danny Boys described it as a 'perfect cube'
So that's ok then!
It makes one wonder whether and whose palms were greased.....
It is just awful. I remember the Planning Meeting that approved the plans. Furious opposition from residents, a massive objection from the Kensington Society, and then Sir Something or Other (Chairman of the developers) standing up (flanked by his advisors) to say that they would do the development anyway. Of course the Chairman of the Planning Committee obligingly agreed.
ReplyDeleteThe new Director of Planning, Mr Graham Stallwood, needs to study these historic cases very carefully. And he needs to be aware that the beady eye of the Dame is watching him closely.
Pish. Pathetic residents. This is a hugely successful financial development.. It is all set to be another premier buy to leave property in the heart of Kensington.
DeleteThat's almost exactly what happened at the Wornington Green gentrification: residents opposed it for a decade along with this and that society, and the Chair passed it with his vote. The lawns outside the new flats are clipped as are the huge and hideously expensive yew topiary while the rest of the estate is filled with short term children who pay a peppercorn rent and prevent vulnerable families from having a home.
DeleteThat's progress!
Terence Conran had the now disgraced Councillors Cockle and Moylan by the short and curlies. Cockle even shelled out a £4 million interest free loan taken from the Council tax
ReplyDeleteThe big gainer is the Phillimore Estate. That great financial dynasty founded on the proceeds of sheep rustling.
ReplyDeleteSilly bloggers. Money talks. Get real guys.
DeleteDoesn't Moylan make you die
ReplyDeleteYou prat. Its our money and our Borough. Of course we are going to make a fuss. And when low life like Cockle shells out £4 million of Council Tax for an interest free loan then the pips are going to squeek
DeleteMust make a good use of my Freedom Pass and visit this monstrosity... Any nice pubs nearby?
ReplyDeleteLeave it for a few weeks and then you can also take in an evening at Holland Park Opera. You can apply now for free tickets for Seniors - provided for you by K&C council tax payers.
DeleteUnbelievable.......
DeleteWhat a wonderful idea, Keith..:-)
DeleteK&C trumpets its removal of street clutter on Ken High while dumping this disgusting concrete cluster on it. Our first-past-the-post system means we are permanently stuck with a clueless claque of craven councillors that kowtows to pushy developers.
ReplyDeleteand allegedly, considerably enhance their wealth... .
DeleteMoylan's pronouncements on matters of architecture are nothing more than attention seeking. He has the artistic sensitivity of a suet pudding.
ReplyDeleteand a face to match!
DeleteThe new guy in the middle of this whole planning apparatus is the new Director of Planning, Mr Graham Stallwood. He has a crucial role to play setting a new standard and culture and managing the expectations of developers. It is a big task and a huge responsibility. He was appointed after much thought. Let us hope that the selectors got it right.
ReplyDeleteMr Stallwood is a good technician. He knows the regulations and the boxes that need to be ticked. But there is a huge political dimension to his job, probably the biggest dimension in the country, because of the extraordinary pressures and greed and insensitivities that arise from the sky high property prices in the Borough. Mr Stallwood needs a mentor in these matters. It is something that Cllr Paget-Brown needs to consider very carefully.
DeleteMentoring Mr Stallwood is not a job for the current Cabinet Member for Planning, Cllr Coleridge. Tim is all charm with not the first notion in his head about the subtle issues of avoiding destruction of society in the better off parts of the Borough
DeleteHas anyone visited the new luxury flats in Kensington High Street that replaced the Charles House Offices?
ReplyDelete2000 inner city jobs destroyed. Replaced by £7 million apartments. All empty. Buy to leave. Happy Chinese and Arab investors.
The above says it all. Coleridge is a passenger. Tory ballast.
Deleteadd these new designer boxes to the 7,000+ high-end hutches at Earl's Court; the impact on the infrastructure will be severe. Dependent local economy torpedoed. Not to mention the effects of the loss of 16% of the UK's exhibition space. But as one local elected Town Hall twit sees it ' We no longer complete against other UK venues but against Europe-wide venues.' Solution? Upgrade and compete? No, facilitate short term greed.
DeleteFrom: Anonymous,
ReplyDeleteThese three "cubes" now hide the Commonwealth Institute, soon to be known as the Design Centre. This building is an original design which gave much pleasure to a lot of people. It is appalling that its view has been blocked by these monsters which will, surely, become largely in the hands of far-away investors.
Who is responsible for this carbuncle. Was it the useless self serving soon to be enobled Cockell?
ReplyDeleteI am aware that Cllr. Moylan has a predilection for the new, young and fresh, but this is a very ugly piece of architecture, blocking the views to the park, and looming over the playing fields.
ReplyDeletePlanning is about the politics of people, plans and policies. Does the new Director of Planning, Mr Stallwood, have the ability and maturity to handle this bandwidth? Hi predecessor, Mr Bore, did not. It was beyond his ability.
ReplyDeleteSo far, Mr Stallwood has not shown himself to be resident friendly. He has not even bothered to introduce himself.
RBKC planning is so patently run for developers' benefit, it's notorious. In last weekend's FT was a story about K & C's regular annual loss of 50 residential units. Developers are repeatedly allowed to knock several flats into single mega-apartments, for absent owners. So despite a rapidly rising population, RBKC is the only borough in southern England with a reducing population. A knock-on effect of this policy may well be the recent boundary changes. It would be amusing if RBKC ended up losing "K" because of it's rotten planning policies.
ReplyDeleteAt the same time, despite apparently lacking the power to dictate the colour of properties, RBKC has chosen to spend residents' funds taking enforcement action against the candy striped house. The owner is a hard case and may take her fight to keep her stripes to the Lords. RBKC will doubtless spend more residents' funds engaging a QC to fight this battle. Meanwhile it very properly has no interest in wasting our funds on providing decent housing for average and low income families.
Trees-in-their-way sold off to developers; the Festival of Britain park-scape at the Commonwealth Institute trashed for profit, replaced by the ugliest inappropriate blocks imaginable; presenting devastatingly impactful basement builds now restricted to one level as some kind of victory for residents: you get what you vote for: or can't in the case of the planners. Stevie Wonder would have a better vision for K&C than that mob
ReplyDeleteWhat was the point of saving the Commonwealth Institute. You cant see it any more for the hideous cubes. Who designs this stuff, and who approves it, and how dare they?????? Are council's corrupt, hopeless or just weak?
ReplyDeletecouncils, i meant, not council's...
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ReplyDelete