Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
Haringey Green Party calls for transparency on the plans for Hornsey Town Hall
Haringey Green Party calls for transparency on the plans for Hornsey Town Hall and the area surrounding it and condemns the Council's secretive process. More openness is needed about the proposed development with stronger safeguarding for this Grade 2* listed building and its village green.
Haringey Green Party recognises that the Town Hall is a publicly funded, important public amenity of great value and use to the local community of Crouch End and beyond.
At present, the Town Hall is a vibrant arts centre and community hub that is home to 74 local businesses employing over 130 people.
Haringey Green Party strongly supports the 17 Haringey Councillors’ request to call in the Council’s decision to ‘dispose’ of the Town Hall and village Green by offering a 125 year lease to the Far East Consortium, a Hong Kong company based in the Cayman Islands, an off-shore tax haven.
Greta Skyes, Chair of Haringey Green Party and Crouch End resident for many years says: ‘We accept that the Town Hall needs to be redeveloped because it has been allowed to fall into a state of disrepair by the Council over many years, but do not accept the approach the Council is taking. The proposal includes 128 units of housing with no provision for social housing and only 4 units of so-called ‘affordable’ housing included. This contravenes the Council’s own target on social housing in development proposals which require 50% of affordable housing on large developments.[1]’
Ronald Stewart, Haringey Green Party candidate in this year’s London Assembly elections and in the recent St. Ann’s by-election, adds: ‘The Hornsey Town Hall Green is part of the fabric of Crouch End and it's the only green space around. We want to hear from Haringey Council that the Green will be protected from building, and protected from private events. Residents and visitors here should be able to enjoy the park. This crucial public asset should never have been part of the plot for sale.’
Haringey Green Party urges the Council to halt the disposal process and to initiate genuine and transparent consultations with the local community about the future use of the Town Hall and the Green.
[1] Haringey Council Strategic Planning Policy (2013 – 2026): http://www.cartogold.co.uk/haringey/text/strategic_policies_2013_do... (see section 3.2 on Housing)
Tags for Forum Posts: Accountability, Haringey Council, Hornsey Town Hall, Transparency
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Chris Setz on
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The Councils' Monitoring Officer decided that they aren't contravening affordable housing policy - does the Green Party accept that?
Does the Haringey Green Party agree with me that:
HTH can be run as a going concern without the need to sell off the car park at the rear?
Also:
1) Assets owned 100% by the public (as HTH is) should not be sold off to for-profit companies.
2) HTH can be run as a going concern without the need to sell off the car park at the rear? Annual running costs are £350k according to the Council, of which half are rates (90% of which are not payable by a charity that ought to run it). One phone mast brings in 90k/yr - adding another mast to the tower would pay for 100% of the running costs and a £35k annual maintenance budget whilst the refurb gradually happens.
3) By using the £480k of 'development' money available from the Heritage Lottery Fund to apply for a further £4m of HLF money, refurb plans can be drawn up that will gradually see HTH restored to it's former glory over a long period, suiting the work to the funds available? Most of HTH is totally usable (and in full use) now.
4) That English Heritage should be approached to drop their objections to anther phone mast (photo above) on the tower because, although it's unsightly, it will bring in another £90k a year to help balance the HTH books and was only refused because of the EH objection?
5) Can they help me quantify the value of that large public space to the rear (the old HTH Car Park), closed off for years, right in the heart of our town?
6) Will they lend volunteers to help organise a series of benefit gigs for a fighting fund to mount the necessary legal challenges to the Council to stop the sell-off going ahead and put HTH in community hands?
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Permalink Reply by John McMullan on
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It will end up "falling down" during the strengthening like the Colliseum on St Ann's/Green Lanes did when Paul Simon "developed" it. Including the car park, think how many flats to house the poor unwashed they'd be able to build.
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