The Grenfell Action Group has used the Freedom of Information Act 2000 to request access to the Council/TMO minutes that we hope will tell us why the Grenfell Tower refurbishment project has not yet progressed. This follows our recent discovery that the Major Planning Development Committee scheduled for 21st May has once again been cancelled.
The Grenfell Tower planning application was first scheduled for decision in December 2012 and has since been postponed no less than six times. Little explanation has been offered for these delays, and none that is remotely credible. Councillor Coleridge continues to insist that the Council fully intends to deliver this project as promised, but local residents are not at all reassured by his words, and do not believe the lame excuses offered for the interminable delays.
SOMETHING IS WRONG HERE AND THERE’S A BAD STINK ABOUT IT.
We will be keeping our readers updated on any developments on this and other issues, and as soon as the requested documents are made available to us by the TMO/Council we will publish relevant extracts on the blog.
In the meantime, we have had a meeting, accompanied by representatives of the Lancaster West Residents Association and the Grenfell Tower Leaseholders Association, with our MP, Sir Malcolm Rifkind, to raise concerns about the delays to the Grenfell Tower project and other matters concerning Lancaster West Estate. Sir Malcolm has agreed to contact Kensington and Chelsea Council on our behalf and raise the following issues:
- Ongoing concerns with regards the loss of our Rights of Way across the Kensington Academy and Leisure Centre (KALC) site.
- Lack of employment opportunities for local people on KALC
- The delays to the Grenfell Tower refurbishment project
- General concerns with regards the “managed decline” of Lancaster West Estate
- The Council’s intention to “socially cleanse” North Kensington and other vulnerable and poor communities in the Royal Borough.
As soon as we have a response from Sir Malcolm, we will also publish this on the blog.
Meanwhile, we wish to express our solidarity with Annie Redmile and the residents of Chesterton Square and Broadwood Terrace (situated above the Council Offices in Pembroke Road) in their up-coming battle against the Council’s plans to “socially cleanse” their housing estate (ie “regenerate”) and destroy their homes and community. You can read their story here, courtesy of the Hornet’s Nest website:
http://fromthehornetsnest.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/people-count-homes-are-precious.html
UNITED WE MUST STAND AGAINST EVIL TORY PLANS FOR THE “SOCIAL CLEANSING” OF THE ROTTEN BOROUGH!
STOP PRESS – BREAKING NEWS
There have been new developments regarding the Grenfell Tower planning application. It appears that residents of Grenfell Tower last night received a surprise hand-delivered update on the current position.
It would appear that the second planning application has now also been withdrawn and a third application will be submitted during the Summer, followed by another round of co-called public consultation.
One of the major implications of these further delays is that even if this new application were to finally be approved at some stage, works on site could not commence until sometime in 2014
Our advice at this stage – Dont held your breath.
WE WILL, OF COURSE, REPORT MORE FULLY ON THESE LATEST DEVELOPMENTS WHEN WE HAVE HAD TIME TO FIND OUT WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON.
Grenfell Action Group 