NEWS

Dickens Yard

The go-ahead from the Mayor for redevelopment of Dickens Yard, behind the Town Hall, was issued in October 2009. The decision was held up for some months over issues relating to on-site renewable energy generation but these have been resolved. Ealing Council have now reached agreement with St George about the terms of the legal agreement, including the sum of money they would receive for the site as well as the section 106 funding, and planning permission was granted in late November 2009. Demolition of "the Village" temporary office has been completed and the Annex building is currently being demolished. The stables block is due to be incorporated into the new development initially as a sales office. Save Ealing's Centre, to which the society is affiliated, is currently considering mounting a legal challenge against the Council for granting planning permission. More information can be found at http://www.saveealingscentre.com

Last Updated 02/2010

Central Ealing Developments

The Arcadia public inquiry closed on Thursday 9 July having run for three weeks. The Planning Inspectorate has indicated that the final decision, to be taken by the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, John Denham, is due on or before 7 December (although this timetable is not set in stone).
      A decision is expected shortly from the Mayor on Dickens Yard, behind the Town Hall. The decision has been held up for some months over issues relating to on-site renewable energy generation but it is believed that these are close to being resolved. Demolition of the Annex office block is expected to start shortly and be completed before the end of the year.
     The former Empire Cinema site remains cleared except for the facade with its supporting scaffolding. According to Empire Cinemas, start on work on the new 16 screen cinema complex has been delayed because of internal design changes caused by the need to move to digital screening. A revised planning application is due to be lodged in the autumn. No start date for work has been given.

Last Updated 09/2009

Public Inquiry for Arcadia

The latest threat to the centre of Ealing comes from proposals from Glenkerrin to redevelop the Arcadia site along with those for a “bus gyratory” on Haven Green. Although a more modest block of 26 storeys has replaced the 41 storey tower, its proposed “blocky” design is rather reminiscent of the 1960s. Other changes to the remaining blocks are less radical and the development would still remain a high density residential one over the railway lines with no supporting infrastructure such as expanded health or schooling facilities, let alone leisure or culture attractions which would benefit the town centre as a whole. The application for the development (but not the bus scheme) was approved by Ealing’s Planning Committee on 17 December and subsequently by the Mayor in January 2009. However, the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government has called the application in for determination (an unusual step). This means that the application was the subject of a local public inquiry which ran for three weeks from 23 June 2009. Sir Peter Hall’s address to the inquiry is available here as a PDF download, and more information on the inquiry is available at Save Ealing’s Centre’s website.

Last Updated 09/2009

Dickens Yard Proposal goes in front of the Mayor

The Dickens Yard planning application was passed by the Council's planning committee on 5 November despite the objections of a large number of Ealing's residents and heavy criticism from the Government's heritage and design advisers, English Heritage and the Commission on Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE). However, it is still not too late to continue to influence the process. The application has still to be approved by the Mayor of London and it is not too late to write to him. Full details on how to do this may be found at Save Ealing's Centre's website.

Last Updated 02/2009

Arcadia Redevelopment

Ealing’s Planning Committee approved the Arcadia application at its meeting on 17 December. The Chairman of the Society, Robert Gurd, said: “this is very disappointing because the committee has now passed two major housing developments in the centre of Ealing, both of which are out of keeping with the conservation areas in which they sit and neither of which delivers much-needed infrastructure improvements which all the new residents living in the developments will need. However, both plans have yet to be approved by the Mayor and we will be asking for them to be called in for determination by the Secretary of State given their major impact on the centre of Ealing.” On a happier note, the committee turned down Glenkerrin’s proposals for a bus interchange on Haven Green. More details on the Planning Committee meeting can be found here.

Last Updated 02/2009

Changes to Ealing Broadway Shopping Centre

Major changes to the Uxbridge Road frontage of the Centre have recently been approved by  Ealing Council Planning Committee despite opposition from the Society. Crystal House lies between the main square of the shopping centre and the Uxbridge Road (opposite WH Smiths), with six shops below. The red brick frontage will be removed and replaced with glass walls. Two extra floors will be added, and the block will be extended on three sides. The Society objected because the site lies within the Ealing Town Centre Conservation Area, and the Broadway Centre is a locally listed building designed to fit in with the local Victorian and Edwardian architecture.  We feel that this development will spoil the consistency of the Centre and overshadow shoppers on the main road.

Last Updated 01/2009

Licensing: can you help?

The Society needs someone who can represent us at the Council’s licensing panels so that we can help to ensure that residents’ needs are considered. If you have an interest in this subject, would be able to attend the hearings (one or two per month, during the day), and can talk persuasively, we would like to hear from you.  Ideally we need someone with legal or licensing knowledge but it's not essential and we would brief and support you. If you feel you can contribute to the Society in this way, do please get in touch with us.

Last Updated 01/2009