IT''S TONIGHT
Dame,
This tale is long. The Dame’s readers will remember that, despite strong public support for it, RBKC has repeatedly tried to destroy Portobello Market,
Shortly before COVID-19, an RBKC Culture officer appeared. Efforts were made to advise her on local culture. A draft Culture Report duly appeared. It lacked an explanation of culture. No more was heard of it. The officer remains in post.
Consultants appeared and consulted; discovering that almost everyone loves Portobello Market. It must be supported and otherwise left alone. The consultants disappeared.
Meanwhile; one summer Saturday, a self-professed estate agent emerged from the market Gin Palace to tell a market trader: that he’d soon be gone. There was an agreement with RBKC to put restaurant and pub tables & chairs on the street. The trader said it wouldn’t happen because he was a legally protected, licensed, Street Trader. (See the London Local Authorities Act 1990 etc.). The estate agent fled and the trader advised his colleagues.
No one was surprised. For years, local commercial property owners have met to plot higher rental incomes from ridding Portobello of street trading. A 1.5km long string of restaurants & bars is the answer. Like the Highland Clearances, the poor will be evicted; so the already wealthy will become richer. This appeals to RBKC.
In the summer of 2022, FTHN reported that: under the auspices of Cllr Faulks, a rash of table & chairs licence applications appeared; each on a market pitch. Each met strong objections; each was ultimately rejected. Cllr Faulks disappeared.
Then for a year, Cllr Kemahli trooped around Portobello trying to find ways of improving the Market into oblivion. He gave up.
In late January 2023, a resident spotted notices of 3 Market public meetings in a single day - on RBKC’s website. RBKC had forgotten to inform the public of the meetings. FTHN reported the details. Within days, 300+ people appeared. At the morning meeting an officer declared the ‘improvements were imminent. After lunch, the traders rejected the plan. By the evening, Cllr Rendell rambled. Then Cllr Kemahli rowed back at speed. Nothing would happen without public consultation.
Meanwhile, a few more applications for tables & chairs licences in the market appeared. One was even granted.
Hence a far more extensive & expensive public consultation. Guess what? Residents; business owners and market traders all agree that the Market must stay! Just renew the fabric and support it. A citizens' Oversight Panel was created - worth £200 per attendee. In practice, members were excluded from all but a a couple of hours from each group meeting. Consequently there was no oversight!
Recently, Cllr Kim Taylor Smith -Deputy RBKC Leader and ‘fixer,' took over. He was reminded that RBKC cannot legally, unilaterally double traders’ rent. Having failed to price the traders out, an alternative is being considered. The consultation findings will be ‘reviewed' by RBKC till May. During that period, the so-called Oversight Panel will not see them! So is it possible that the consultation results will be amended to suit RBKC’s agenda? At a traders’ meeting last week, KTS announced RBKC's intention to ‘investigate' one of the primary results of the unpublished consultation. The road design is the issue. Significant change is likely to benefit restaurants & bars. That’s RBKC public consultation. That’s the plan and it won’t work!
This final point will sound familiar. On Friday, the Market Office invited locals to the Market Streets Action Group, on Tues. 19th March. Attendees will have had just 1 working day’s notice of the last RBKC meeting before election ‘purdah’. Purdah will prevent any discussion of the future of the Market till 2nd May; allowing RBKC 6 weeks to manipulate the public consultation results. As ever, the aim is the destruction of the Market for private profit!
Further updates to follow. In the meantime, perhaps the Dame’s many readers will be kind enough to pass on their views on the above to their respective Councillors.
Yours faithfully
A. Witness
Shortly before COVID-19, an RBKC Culture officer appeared. Efforts were made to advise her on local culture. A draft Culture Report duly appeared. It lacked an explanation of culture. No more was heard of it. The officer remains in post.
Consultants appeared and consulted; discovering that almost everyone loves Portobello Market. It must be supported and otherwise left alone. The consultants disappeared.
Meanwhile; one summer Saturday, a self-professed estate agent emerged from the market Gin Palace to tell a market trader: that he’d soon be gone. There was an agreement with RBKC to put restaurant and pub tables & chairs on the street. The trader said it wouldn’t happen because he was a legally protected, licensed, Street Trader. (See the London Local Authorities Act 1990 etc.). The estate agent fled and the trader advised his colleagues.
No one was surprised. For years, local commercial property owners have met to plot higher rental incomes from ridding Portobello of street trading. A 1.5km long string of restaurants & bars is the answer. Like the Highland Clearances, the poor will be evicted; so the already wealthy will become richer. This appeals to RBKC.
In the summer of 2022, FTHN reported that: under the auspices of Cllr Faulks, a rash of table & chairs licence applications appeared; each on a market pitch. Each met strong objections; each was ultimately rejected. Cllr Faulks disappeared.
Then for a year, Cllr Kemahli trooped around Portobello trying to find ways of improving the Market into oblivion. He gave up.
In late January 2023, a resident spotted notices of 3 Market public meetings in a single day - on RBKC’s website. RBKC had forgotten to inform the public of the meetings. FTHN reported the details. Within days, 300+ people appeared. At the morning meeting an officer declared the ‘improvements were imminent. After lunch, the traders rejected the plan. By the evening, Cllr Rendell rambled. Then Cllr Kemahli rowed back at speed. Nothing would happen without public consultation.
Meanwhile, a few more applications for tables & chairs licences in the market appeared. One was even granted.
Hence a far more extensive & expensive public consultation. Guess what? Residents; business owners and market traders all agree that the Market must stay! Just renew the fabric and support it. A citizens' Oversight Panel was created - worth £200 per attendee. In practice, members were excluded from all but a a couple of hours from each group meeting. Consequently there was no oversight!
Recently, Cllr Kim Taylor Smith -Deputy RBKC Leader and ‘fixer,' took over. He was reminded that RBKC cannot legally, unilaterally double traders’ rent. Having failed to price the traders out, an alternative is being considered. The consultation findings will be ‘reviewed' by RBKC till May. During that period, the so-called Oversight Panel will not see them! So is it possible that the consultation results will be amended to suit RBKC’s agenda? At a traders’ meeting last week, KTS announced RBKC's intention to ‘investigate' one of the primary results of the unpublished consultation. The road design is the issue. Significant change is likely to benefit restaurants & bars. That’s RBKC public consultation. That’s the plan and it won’t work!
This final point will sound familiar. On Friday, the Market Office invited locals to the Market Streets Action Group, on Tues. 19th March. Attendees will have had just 1 working day’s notice of the last RBKC meeting before election ‘purdah’. Purdah will prevent any discussion of the future of the Market till 2nd May; allowing RBKC 6 weeks to manipulate the public consultation results. As ever, the aim is the destruction of the Market for private profit!
Further updates to follow. In the meantime, perhaps the Dame’s many readers will be kind enough to pass on their views on the above to their respective Councillors.
Yours faithfully
A. Witness
The blogger must be wearing rose tinted spectacles, the Council really need to improve the market. Saturday morning and I followed the herd from Notting Hill Gate tube station. The walk was much longer than I had anticipated, and the entire area was grubby. Much of the market itself was full of junk and "made in China" goods. Having been a market vendor myself, I was taken aback by the behaviour of most of the vendors (unapproachable and ill-informed). It got so incredibly crowded that I had to head back to the underground. Instead of knee jerk moaning, let’s hear what is to be proposed first.
ReplyDeletePerhaps 20.16 is more at home in Knightsbridge. RBKC has spent years ensuring Portobello Market is as uncomfortable as possible to visit, particularly on Saturdays. The pitches are small, but the market office encourages hundreds of oversize gazebos, These leave no gaps between the stalls for pedestrians to pass. The pavements haven't been relaid for 40 years. All this and more is supposed to make the Market unpopular; but it hasn't. People love it for its humanity.
DeleteOver the past decade Portabello Market has changed dramatically. Less locals visit as it has become mainly a tourist area. Nearby supermarkets are much more convenient for some people and it’s harder to get people in.
ReplyDeleteCorrect, but this is not accidental. For years the council has ignored everything apart from encouraging ever more tourists, while discouraging local shoppers. One recent example is that there are 10 empty fresh food pitches. Two years ago a list of 10 qualified food traders was sent to the market office. Not one of the 10 food specialists was offered a licence.
DeleteSome of the nearby supermarkets have become aimed at mostly catering to tourists and visitors too.
DeleteFor example Portobello Road Tescos these days mainly sells snacks, sandwiches and booze rather than fresh food, storecupboard items and household goods.
Instead of going to the market for antiques, I would encourage everyone to visit the shops. In the market, only a few vendors still sell antique goods, most of them sell mass-produced (jewellery, clothes, etc.) items. The vintage stores on the street however have unique products, a wide assortment, and for the most part, are reasonably priced.
ReplyDeleteWhen will the true history of this Borough be left alone. Residents love the market, tourists love the market it brings people to it and brings people together, this includes those with money and those struggling. Stop trying to turn this community into something that has no soul. This game playing is unacceptable. Leave the Market ALONE!
ReplyDeleteDon’t bother sending your comments on Portobello to the useless backstabbing vermin known as DAHABO ISSE. She doesn’t give a toss about Colville residents. Tory backstabbing bitch
ReplyDeleteShe's never done what she was elected to do, so people didn't know she was a she. Now she's a Tory.
DeleteI doubt Isse has ever been to Portobello market. She's never in the area or has shown any care or concern for the area and locals.
Delete. Convenient for a council that wants to do away with the market because they can treat EC resident and councillor-who doesn't- do-any-work Isse as a ' "local stakeholder" no doubt. She'll happily go along with whatever they want and she can put the council's view as "local responses and feedback"
The Market: antiques, recycling the old for a new generation: fresh food, important for small businesses and locals alike; crafts and imports feeding so many families with these small businesses, must be protected for another generation. Simple.
ReplyDeleteThis story is astonishing. What a huge waste of residents' money? The Council seems to think that no one on average income; much less below it, has the right to live or work amongst us. It seems that no part of K & C can be left alone to be spontaneous and lively. Just rows of half empty, beautiful terrace homes, endlessly increasing in value and endlessly repainted white constitute society. It's all so dull!
ReplyDeleteJust look at Westbourne Grove. It used to be buzzing. Now it's just dreary clothes shops.
DeleteNo council meetings should be held on a single day's notice and it seems, this is not the first time.
ReplyDeleteThe author is on to something. RBKC is not to be trusted with publicly owned assets. Is there a possible connection with the story of the missing Colville councillors? And who benefits from yet more restaurants and pubs? Existing ones seem to open and close every day.
Why is Faulks involved in these questionable events?
This has been tried before. It didn't end well.
ReplyDeleteThe last time was over 40 ago. It was about cobble stones and ended in a fight in the street. The council has hardly spent anything since. Now they want the market gone. Who will visit just for overpriced restaurants and bars. There are far too many already in easier to get to and prettier places.
DeleteEvery trick in the book is being tried by the Council to manipulate the outcome of the recent public consultation. This won't work because far too many people know that the that the primary conclusion of the operation is that Portobello market must be protected and improved. It must not be swept away for the benefit of a handful of greedy landlords.
ReplyDeleteAs expected, at a meeting called at a single working day's notice, very few members of the public attended tonight's meeting.
ReplyDeleteIt was quite civilised. KTS was on his best behaviour, busily avoiding discussion of the elephant in the room in a flurry of promised activity and concern for the community etc etc. Only towards the end there were various brief references to the nighttime economy and additional after hours uses of market pitches. You get the drift. In short, they know that we know exactly what's really going on.
One remarkable detail of last night's meeting was that, when RBKC officers and councillors were asked how many people live along Portobello market, there was no response.
ReplyDeleteRBKC doesn't know and clearly doesn't care. Its focus is solely on making yet more money for a few property owners and brewers, at the expense of the community.
The Tories are clearly out of touch. Chancellor Jeremy Hunt claims £100,000 a year 'not a huge salary'.
DeleteIn RBKC it always seems that a popular public asset is destined to be grabbed by the greedy for private gain. This must be prevented here. As we all need the sun, the sky and trees, we need Portobello Market for a strong dose of genuine spontaneity and humanity.
ReplyDelete