Homes for Lambeth (HFL) are consulting with residents on plans to build a 7-storey block of flats on what was open space and a planned children’s playground. The site is bordered by Sancroft, Vauxhall and Orsett Streets.
The monies made from the sale of these 38 flats will be used to build 29 new social housing flats and community centre on Carmelita Street. Additional profits will be invested by Homes for Lambeth in further housing in Lambeth - no guarantee has been given that this investment will be made in Princes Ward.
Online consultations were held the same week leaflets advertising the events landed in the midst of the CV19 pandemic.
Princes Ward is paying a massive price in the push to provide more and more and more housing and it must stop:
- 1,500 plus new homes in the Oval Village (former Tesco) 3 mins down the road
- 178 new homes (planning agreed) on the soon to be re developed Graphite Square (Worgan St), also 3 mins walk away.
- Hundreds if not a thousand dwellings on infill beneath the high-rise flats on Lollard Street, Kennington Road and Black Prince Road. Significant amounts of green and recreational space have been lost to residents as a result.
- Loss of our local Vauxhall City Farm allotments – the only allotments within miles.
- Loss of park land to what was meant to be a work live art gallery. In reality this is a space never open to the public and contains two luxury flats on Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens
- The explosion of housing along the river.
The Orsett Street development will sit on land that was originally open recreational space (see the following pictures). It was leased to the construction firm building the multi-storey apartments behind the Beaufoy Institute – Palm House and Malt House.
It was to be returned to residents and made into an adventure playground for resident’s children. The developers paid money into a fund. Cllr Jon Davies confirmed the money for the children’s playground is held in trust by the Vauxhall Gardens Tenants and Resident’s Association (VGERTA).
For some years the site has been continuously used as a Builders Yard. Communications have been going on with the Council and Lambeth Planning since 10th of October 2017 and even earlier with Steve Morgan when he was a councillor in the Ward.
Many residents are concerned about:
- The public consultation was run with little notice. None of the residents in Sancroft House, on Orsett Street, Newburn Street on the same block or across the Road on Vauxhall Street received notification of the consultation.
- HFL are building 38 new private homes on Orsett Street and 29 new social housing homes on the Carmelita site that will not go anywhere near solving the 28,000-person waiting list. Residents’:
- Children
- Recreational space
- Mental and
- Physical well-being
- The environment will suffer.
- We need more green space for residents not less. The promise of a return to green space - apparently the ‘improved’ smaller green space that will be created compensates for.
- The CV19 lockdown has proved the importance of recreational spaces for people living in apartments. Most apartments in Princes Ward have – no gardens, no balconies, nowhere to escape. Sunday 17th there was no place to sit in Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens, no space in Old Paradise Park, no space in Lambeth Walk Open Space, Pedlar’s Park is now so overshadowed by multi storey building there is no sun.
- The plans for Orsett Street will see our neighbourhood lose one of the few remaining areas of green space, originally planned - with money already held in trust to fund it - to be developed into a children’s playground.
- The retention of green space is now a critical matter for the health and well-being of Princes Ward residents - more important than building yet more luxury homes.
- Residents will see a significant increase in traffic through construction and when the apartments and new housing is complete.
- No traffic impact study was presented at the consultation. While we understand residents will not be allowed to apply for parking permits residents of Courtenay and Sancroft Street always have cars parked outside our properties, engines idling. This may be because we are part of a one-way street system. It will only increase with yet more flats.
- While a light consultant attended the consultation sessions their work was not presented to residents. The unusual height of the block – 7 storeys when other buildings in the vicinity are 5 cannot but cast shadows and negatively impact the surrounding streets and residents.
- Parking will become more difficult; bike spaces are already difficult to get.
- Blocks surrounding the site are 5 storeys. The application will be for a building of 7 storeys.
PLEASE GIVE YOUR FEEDBACK ON THE DEVELOPMENT TO: carmelitaandorsett@yourshout.org
The Site in 2012
The Site as it is now and has been for some years
A children's playground was promised
And now this is what's proposed
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