Bimbo Hart
AVON HOUSE, ALLEN ST
Every so often a planning officer's life becomes so entwined with a dodgy project the old Dame has to say "cool the ardour..."
Yes, Mrs Gentry...this is directed at you and your eagerness to help the mysterious Swiss property developer Harry 'Bimbo' Hart.
The developer is a fund owned by multi-millionaire Swiss-based Brit Harry "Bimbo" Hart. Bimbo's sinister dad was a Maggie Thatcher 'Mr Fixit'.
'Boy' Bimbo grew up on Chadacre Estate in Suffolk where his father famously battled the local council during the construction of a gold pyramid tomb https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1262285/Richard-Kay-31-March-2010.html
Now Bimbo is trying to convince us that we need a new care home managed by his ultra-luxury KYN operation.
At the last committee meeting he persuaded fellow private equity fund multi-millionaire Robert Darwent's wife Julia to tell her sob story about not finding suitable accommodation for her mother.
Life is tough even for those worth over a hundred million....
The Dame has dealt extensively with Bimbo MYSTERIOUS BIMBO and his very odd father. It's worth reading.
On Tuesday Bimbo and his team are back again. As usual, RBKC planning officer Sarah Gentry is again all too eager to lend her shoulder to Bimbo's wheel.
A double basement was approved for a 2016 proposal for a neurological care centre. This is still apparantly to be approved for a care home housing dementia patients in a deep and dark basement with no neurological care centre in sight.
Why does Planning Officer Sarah Gentry keep quiet about the expert report commissioned by civically minded residents?
Their damming report radically contradicts the noise, light and environmental assessments in every aspect.
Outlandishly, Gentry makes the outrageously untrue claim this ultra-luxury care home would support the Council's housing plans and address the shortage of beds in the borough! Obviously, Bimbo's PR team fed Gentry that little gem....
It seems that is sad multi-millionaires also suffer from the housing shortage.
And on top of all this we are led to believe that housing dementia patients in the basement is acceptable because there is a little light well for natural light... yes, in the basement...
Sarah also finds that the multitude of RBKC policies in this conservation area should be ignored for an extra 5 rooms. Those extra basement rooms are critical for the profitability of the site we are told.
The proposal has had more than double the number of objections than support and the supposed 'supporters' all look artificially 'harvested' by Team Bimbo.
If planning officers are going to take what corporate planning applicants tell them as bible without considering recognised experts' opinions why we need planning officers in the first place?
Is it incompetence or something worse? We do not know.
We wish local residents, the adjacent Kensington United Reform Church, ESSA, the Kensington Society and all those opposing the best of luck.
What an utter shambles. We don't need more luxury accommodation in RBKC and certainly not one that ignores all the rules. This must be stopped
ReplyDeleteAnd to add. Dementia patients housed in the basement with a small light well? How cruel and for this RBKC is bending over backwards. Would be good to investigate any brown envelopes.
DeleteDouble basement is no longer valid. not for luxury care home. RBKC wake up. Allen Street is a conservation area. The proposals with machinery and extractor fans on the roof do not belong there.
ReplyDelete