WILD TIMES IN THE ROTTEN BOROUGH

The advantage of living in the Royal Borough is one can exist in a bubble, immune from the cruel realities of life in the grubby world outside. 
Lucky Julian Wild must be having a good old giggle down at the Arts Club.....not only is he not a resident of our Borough but lives in East Sussex! So why are we wasting this money on someone who neither lives in the Borough nor has never paid our Council tax. It is clearly a case of who you know.....

It seems Mr Wild has persuaded our Medici like 'Prime Minister' Pooter Cockell to dip into the £180 million of reserves to sort him out with a purpose built studio! 

And this is not the first time....here is another, previous example of Cockell, showing off with our hard earned cash....

According to Pooter,"Talented artist Jodie Carey can

concentrate on her art rather than

the problems of finding– and

funding – somewhere to work,

thanks to a new bursary scheme

set up by Kensington and Chelsea

Council."

The studio bursary scheme gives

local artists like Jodie access to free

studio space for three years, an

annual bursary of £5,000 and help

with other bills and insurance costs.

They also receive membership of

the Chelsea Arts Club and further

help with the cost of materials

through the support of the Chelsea

Arts Club Trust.

What a waste  of our money!

"Wrestling Pythons" by Julian Wild
1 February - 3 March

Our current Leighton House exhibition is 'Wrestling Pythons' by the sculptor Julian Wild.

From 2009-2012 Julian Wild was recipient of The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea/Chelsea Arts Club Trust Studio Bursary. The bursary provided Julian with a purpose built studio in the borough. For this exhibition Julian will be showing works made during the residency.
The title of the exhibition is taken from Leighton's most famous sculpture 'Athlete Wrestling with a Python'. Many of the works in Wild's exhibition are inspired by the serpentine forms in Leighton's sculpture. The seductive surfaces of Wild's sculptures also reference the decorative processes used inside the house.  'Wrestling Pythons' can be taken as a metaphor for the difficult task of making and installing this work in such a historically and visually rich place.

The Dame says it is an insult to the poor and needy that the Borough pays for this sort of silly indulgence when we cannot afford basic care for the needy.....

A SOCIAL CLEANSING PROPERTY TAX

The Dame has received this copy letter from a concerned resident. The resident had sent it to the progenitor of this mad and unworkable scheme, Vince Cable. Miliband- a politician so bereft of ideas and so keen to collaborate with the  enfeebled Lib Dems, has promised to include the tax in his manifesto.

Central London employment is heavily dependent on the rich who have descended on our town. We may not like them, but they are an indispensable source of job creation. To drive them out at a time when we need them most is utter folly,
But how about those in London with limited income and just the asset they live in?
The Dame will publish the Doc's reply to how he would break the news to some old age pensioner living out the end of his or her days in a flat or house valued at over £2 million and faced with having to sell up and move out.
Interestingly, we have heard nothing about the idiotically  named Mansion Tax from our absentee MP, Sir Malc Rifkind or our absentee PM, Pooter Cockell.

The Rt Hon Vincent Cable MP

The House of Commons

London SW1

February 14th 2013

Dear Doctor Cable

Some advice please.....

My ninety six year old neighbor has lived in her Chelsea flat for close to forty years. She is now in extremely poor health. As executor I am privy to her financial position. 

I have advised her the introduction of your proposed property tax will force her to leave her beloved flat.

I am certain you can provide suitable words of solace which I can convey, on your behalf, to this vulnerable old lady.

Woud you mind if I forwarded your advice to my local paper, the Kensington & Chelsea Chronicle: they will be keen to know the generalised advice you can provide to the very many frightened & elderly K&C residents in a similar situation to my neighbour.

Yours sincerely

REWARDING WRONG PEOPLE

Merrick Cockell is a man on a mission…..his desperation to get his ample bottom onto the red leather of the Lords is the talk of the town.

His desperation is well based.  Even he realizes close colleagues are making treacherous noises hoping his fourteen years of misrule is drawing to a close.

Cockell’s hope was that he would be rewarded with a job in the Lords and a replacement income to make up for the lost £70,000 a year from RBK&C and £55,000 a year from the LGA quango.

Sadly, the prospects for our ‘Prime Minister’ look less than rosy, even though many of us are rooting for his peerage as the only way of getting rid of him.

HEROIC JAY

The Dame has been enthralled by the BBC's Brain Doctor series. 

For those who have missed the documentary it explores the life-saving skills of child brain surgeon Jay Jayamohan and his team of fellow surgeons and nurses at John Ratcliffe Hospital, Oxford.

If one man deserves a peerage for his humanity and skill it’s the likes of this saintly man. Instead, we reward the likes of Cockell:it really makes one despair of this country.

FLYING INTO TROUBLE

From Architects Journal

The trouble with city mayors is their obsession with legacy, and Boris Johnson has set his sights on a Thames Estuary airport as his grand projet. Since Boris Bikes were Ken Livingstone’s idea, as was the bid for the London Games, it’s not surprising that Johnson wants something grander on his CV. So far, Johnson’s projects include two dubious and controversial investments: the estimated £25 million spent on scrapping bendy-buses and commissioning Heatherwick’s double-decker, and the £60 million cable car.

While the Estuary solution is his firm favourite, Boris has said he will consider the 15 other proposals submitted to his office. But the discussion is about which airport now, not whether London needs an airport at all. It’s hard to believe that just a few years ago we were taking oaths not to fly to save CO2. Now London aviation adviser Daniel Moylan has made the future of London dependent upon an East London mega-airport.

Both Johnson and Moylan would do well to revisit a cautionary tale from the 1970s, when 1976 Olympic city Montreal invested in building a mega-airport to secure its position as a major transit hub. Mirabel was the largest airport in the world in terms of surface area until 1996. But it was a total failure.

The existing airport, Dorval, was closer and easier to reach, and the government’s attempt to force airlines to switch just built resentment. Today, Mirabel is used exclusively for cargo, passenger services having ceased in 2005. It’s frequently used as a film set, and the airport starred in Spielberg’s The Terminal. Dorval, renamed Pierre Elliott Trudeau, has since been refurbished and expanded.

If you ask me, looking to invest in Stansted makes more sense and, in times of austerity, cheaper. Having multiple smaller airports is more practical than a mega-hub in a city like London. And, as most people use the airport closest to them, I doubt the residents of Chelsea or south-west London can be induced to trudge across the capital to catch a flight as long as Heathrow is down the road. It may not be as grand a projet for the mayor, but it would be nice if he would invest less grandly and more usefully for a change. We could always rename Stansted after BoJo, if it makes him feel better.

BOOKER BRINGS COUNCILS LIKE RBK&C TO BOOK

They squeal about cuts but the truth is town halls are spending more than ever - by fleecing you

By CHRISTOPHER BOOKER

BOOKER 

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2275882/They-squeal-cuts-truth-town-halls-spending--fleecing-you.html#ixzz2KP0CsC2a
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook


Christopher Booker has written an excellent article in today's Daily Mail Council waste on how councils like K&C fritter away taxpayers' hard earned wealth. It should be obligatory reading for every councillor and shame them into mending their ways: that is assuming that they have any shame.....

Striking is the fact that it matters not in the least the political hue of a council...Conservative councils-which one expects to be prudent, are as sinful as Labour and Lib Dem.......

Anyway....here is the link to an exceptionally good piece. And the comments are worth reading too.

THE DEATH OF THE CHELSEA GARDEN

A resident writes.....

I am becoming increasingly concerned about the damage to wildlife and the ecology which basement excavations are causing. A terrible example of this is the self indulgent and incredibly vulgar redevelopment by that rather silly Eccleston woman at Sloane House in Old Church Street. I have seen an email which was sent to RBK&C from I presume, a next door neighbour about disruption to her property caused by the excesses of next door. One day she was minding her own business pottering around her house and having a quiet and relaxed day when suddenly all hell broke loose and everything started ratting and clinking; literally everything which was not secured to the floor! Surely this is totally unacceptable and has led to the Sloane House development being deemed as a Benchmark case and a bad one at that!  The man from the planning department have visited the site on a number of occasions.

Local resident associations and amenity groups are extremely concerned, so much so that they are putting forward detailed recommendations/guidelines about basement developments and suggesting some restrictions such as the size of the proposed development being restricted both in depth and width in relation to the overall garden space, If we are not careful every “garden ” will be minimalist and comprising of some gravel, paving stones and a couple of shrubs.  Clearly, there is nothing here for any wildlife and certainly not earthworms (I remember a song by a band by the name of Stackridge, emphasising the important and essential ecological work that earthworms perform).

The public at large are now far more concerned and aware of the importance of wildlife thanks to some degree by some excellent programmes on BBC such as Spring watch produced by enthusiasts such as Chris Packham and others.

I do not know about you but I am very concerned about the impact on our wildlife, here in Chelsea; it cannot be right for nesting birds to be given no consideration whatsoever to make way for a dipper or a dumping truck.  I have noticed over the past few years the reduction in singing birds especially at spring time, which I think it is fair top say is one of the absolute joys of spring.  

If Chelsea is to continue to be one of the most desirable places to live in London, then restrictions, which will need to be rigorously policed, should be put in place to ensure that everyone gets on with each other, just a little better. Sadly over the past couple of years there have been far too many outsiders spoiling the enjoyment of established residents most of whom are seeking a peaceful time.

As far as I can see the Council is dragging its heels on this issue and I cannot see the Council being prepared to try to put a halt on Hedge Fund Managers, developers and other profiteers without some undue influence.

RESIDENT ASSOCIATIONS SHOULD PUT UP CLLRS

It would seem that if you are stinking rich and rarely in London Mr Bore and his feeble Planning Committee members allow you to do what you wish....even though it means disrupting the lives of traditional, less well off, neighbours.

BAD NEIGHBOURS

This seems the case judging by the decision yesterday to grant Muck Flick permission to build a vast underground complex under his already massive Georgian mansion. And it is the Georgian mansion bit that got the Dame thinking....
English Heritage always object to any basement under the 'foot print' of a listed building so why are they not objecting to this application? Well, it seems that because Muck's pad is tucked away so they didn't notice it! As the Dame's old friend, disgraced ex cllr and Mayor Barry Phelps was wont to say, "you could not make it up!"

The Dame encourages residents to email Mr Roger Bowlder, head of English Heritage, Roger.Bowdler@english-heritage.org.uk asking him to send his staff over to assess the property. 
The Standard have written a major piece about Muck's plans Muck to excavate the mud

Here's a bit about the  FLICK FAMILY.....

Interestingly, one resident, George Barbour wrote plaintively that the project was  “tasteless” and “environmentally hazardous”, adding: “I’m appalled by the council’s decision — but not surprised, as it’s always riding roughshod over residents’ views.”

Residents associations are putty in the hands of this council. Councillors have no fear of them. In fact, those that toe the line and do what they're told are even given £500 and a Gold Medal! Pathetic!

Resident associations need to get a grip and put up their own candidates at the next elections. That is the only threat this Rotten Borough takes seriously.

HOLLAND PARK UNDER NEW THREAT

Predictably, Michael 'Vulpine' Volpe, the taxpayer funded director of Holland Park Opera, has made a fresh assault on the charms of Holland Park. 

MR VOLPE

Having been rebuffed last time around he has taken the advice of the Planning Department and returned to the fray with a demand his canopy remain in situ for EIGHT MONTHS of the year

Below is the call to arms from the Friends of Holland Park: it should not be ignored....

The success in having Opera Holland Park withdraw their outrageous planning application for a year round canopy is due to the very large number of individuals and organisations that wrote or emailed to object. Thank you all for your support.   

However, OHP has put in a new application which is still damaging, this time for the canopy to be in place for eight months, 1 March to 31 October.  The Friends of Holland Park Committee feel this is indulgent and excessive for an opera season that lasts just two months.  We are not against the opera or the canopy in itself, but we urge you to take action to limit the period to a reasonable five months from mid April to mid September. 

Our grounds for objecting are:

·         Past planning applications have reflected the desirability of fast and efficient construction and striking of the opera canopy ‘to ensure sufficient periods for this heritage asset to be enjoyed withoutinterruption...’ In 2007 the plan was for the canopy to be in place from 16 April to 24 August.  Timing has drifted over the years so that construction begins earlier and dismantling is later with contractors working at a leisurely pace, resulting in less and less time for appreciation of Holland House.  English Heritage, in its publication ‘Temporary Structures in Historic Places’, indicates temporary structures should be removed and remedial works carried out promptly after the event. 

There is no justification for extending contractors’ time by three months over that considered necessary in 2007.

·         The English Heritage publication further advises that planning should minimise the visual impact on key views of a listed building. Holland House is Grade 1 listed, and of national importance, so deserves to be seen to best advantage for the majority of the year.  The Council invested well in excess of £100,000 in conserving the Holland House frontage, landscaping the terrace and creating a wonderful, tranquil space for residents and visitors, which has been universally enjoyed and appreciated.

The proposed plan means the key view of Holland House and its terrace would be compromised for eight months of the year.

·         Confirmed strategy and policies are in place to protect the open character of the site and its designation as an historic park, and the setting of the Grade 1 Listed building.

         Extending the period would infringe policy and strategy agreements.

Please take urgent action – public consultation ends on 22 Feb 2013.

If you share our concern please take immediate action by stating your objection to the length of time applied for and ask that the canopy be in place only for the five months from mid April to mid September.

1.    In an email to the RBKC planning department at planning@rbkc.gov.uk , reference planning application PP/13/00374.

    Or,

2.    In writing to Claire Shearing, Planning and Borough Development Department, RBKC, Ground Floor, Town Hall, Hornton Street, W8 7NX quoting reference PP/13/00374.

The trustees of The Friends of Holland Park                 www.thefriendsofhollandpark.org