Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
Evening Standard Photo Call for Planning Objectors
Within the context of a story on the 'restaurantisation' of London's high streets, the Evening Standard has picked up on the story of the planning application by the new restaurant on Green Lanes.
They want to take a photo of a group of objectors for inclusion in the piece and are asking for local people who objected to take part.
Reporter Natasha Salmon and an ES photographer will be at the Bottom of Pemberton Road this evening at 7PM and have requested as many people as possible to make their way there. Look for someone with a camera!
You can contact Natasha on natashasalmon@gmail.com.
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Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Hugh on
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Thanks for the update Robbie. I'm sure it's a little irregular, but I hope it can be overlooked. I've captured the piece here:
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Permalink Reply by 1vut8bf3om5m9 on
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It took about 6 minutes of letting the interview subject ramble desultorily before the story started--the lack of permission of this particular restaurant.
The BBC missed the key issue of whether this is a one off end-run around planning permission or is this a trend that many merchants practice, and, if so where?--Haringey only, London only, etc.
And finally while it's appreciated that someone from the BBC actually went out to the spot rather than base a story on Twitter Tweets, they didn't talk to anyone who might have a different point of view about the purported "lack of diversity" in the area.
As I have said before, Las Vegas is as popular as it is because it has casino after casino and not the other way around. The competition keeps cost down and quality up--not the other way around (AKA capitalism).
So to summarise--here is how journalists ought to approach this: (i) Is there a trend to circumnavigate planning that this restaurant exemplifies, or is Sira a one off in this instance?; and, (ii) is the concentration of these sorts of restaurants on Harringay Green Lanes a negative, positive or neutral thing? I am more inclined to view as positive although I do wonder if some of the establishments aren't just money-laundering operations, which is a wholly different matter.
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Knavel, I think that's really harsh, unkind and inaccurate. As I listened, I thought the Grand Parade resident was doing a pretty good job representing the situation, albeit from her own personal perspective.
As to the BBC talking to the right people, Robbie did ask for people to contact him. Did you respond? As well a contributing as a local resident, you could have shared your wisdom on how the issue should be presented on a radio breakfast show.
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Permalink Reply by John McMullan on
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Not sure about money laundering Knavel (I have heard that the quality of the meat served in the restaurants is not what it might be which can account for cost) but have you seen this: Harringay Community Action Group & Hayri Goztas?
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John I have only eaten at two of the Turkish restaurants. I can only speak anecdotally per that experience but I have not had any quality issues at all, ever. I would add that I am Italian and lived in Piedmont for a decade where some of the finest meat on earth is produced. I am fairly discerning.
On the money laundering thing, there are places that are perpetually empty or near empty. I am always thinking about money laundering examples as i usually give lectures on the subject as I have been approved as money laundering officer by the Financial Conduct Authority for various businesses coming on 20 years. I am not accusing anyone, just musing.
...Yes it looks like I am too late for Harringay's more colourful days. As I have young children that' s probably a good thing, even though I missed out on rock bottom pricing that such crime surely must have helped engender!
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Crikey! That deserves a bigger audience John. With any luck his fellow gangsters will realise that at some point Hayri will sell them to the police, we do not want a return to the bad old days.
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Hugh, I was managing editor of my university newspaper and worked as a beat writer for a while before graduate school. I call the story as I see it. If the story was to let one person tell what having a restaurant under her flat is like, then they got the correct story. I, personally--just me (YMMV)--do not think there is much public interest in that angle, for the same reason that people don't want to hear at length about someone else's experience sitting on the tarmac in a plane for 6 hours because of a flight delay. Just because we don't want to hear it doesn't mean we are not empathetic.
I am not on the paid staff of the BBC so it's not incumbent on me to do their work. That said, I would have taken him up perhaps but didn't catch that part of this discussion till after the fact. I am glad you liked the piece (hence my being "inaccurate") but I thought the story didn't tell us anything useful except that there is one restaurant that annoys people because of the planning permission approach. I would be interested to know why people can ostensibly get away with this.
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Thanks for your comments Hugh - said resident right here!
I think I was contacted primarily to offer the 'resident comment' and the questions asked were pretty immediate to my own experience which, given the safety concerns, I didn't object to highlighting!
I do agree that using the very specific example of the ongoing restaurant as the entry point to the bigger topic of restaurantisation is quite an awkward shoe horn given how entangled the story with it is. Additional interviewees would certainly have extracted more on the wider discussion and whilst I did try to steer the questions round, I couldn't hear the studio with the context on how the story was segued to and having never done a live radio interview before I can now safely say it's a lot harder than it sounds! As I gather both the council and traders association were also reached out to for alternative comment but, other than the council statement, couldn't confirm their engagement in time for the feature.
But...enough of being desultory ;) let me make my point! I really hope the Sira example is a one off and I guess the reason why it's been used in both the Evening standard article and BBC feature is because, as Knavel mentions, in it's example it raises the question of just how easy it has been to circumnavigate planning laws/ regulation as well as whether the concentration of these sorts of restaurants is a negative, positive or neutral thing. From my perspective a concentration of restaurants per se is no bad thing but, as with any economy, there comes a tipping or saturation point where such direct competition starts to dilute each others' business. In which case typically larger restaurants with the capacity to take high volumes of covers are those who encroach on the smaller. With the Sira example I think you'll agree that it's not fair to openly allow one trading illegally to divert custom from the many honest small business operating on Green lanes.
If the council truly want to help promote Green lanes a 'foodie' destination akin to china town etc then it needs to be done with the proper thought and investment into the consideration of the cost- to residents, small business and what impact shifting towards a nighttime economy would have on both. As with China town, would this result in a exodus of residents who no longer want to live amidst the bustle or above the risk of restaurant culture? Either way as with the Sira example, development of this nature shouldn't have to be at the cost to residents' safety. Whilst the council are now aware of it, the Sira example has highlighted just how easy it has been to circumvent regulation and, despite intention, how poorly equipped the council seem to be able to coordinate departments and resource to properly investigate and enforce good practice. Before they look to make Green Lanes a destination and promote more development of this kind, there's clearly still a lot left to be desired on how it can be managed.
I believe the story could be picked up by BBC London news so there may well be further opportunity to become the alternative view!
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If you want to buy a flat above a supermarket/grocer, then you can get a mortgage on it so can effectively pay the big, big price of "what it's probably worth in 20 years time". If you want to buy a flat above a restaurant with an extractor fan then you can't get a mortgage and so the price will be MUCH lower. It's not just about the makeup of the street (I'd like more restaurants, each new one that opens gets better than the already existing awesome ones).
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We are just tenants but I see your point and I think it's something our landlord is certainly concerned by. We will ultimately have to move if it's not sorted but as we're not the the ones breaking the law will try and get it sorted before we resort to that!
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Permalink Reply by DavidJ on
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Well done Alice! - I thought you did very well, you got the important points about planning permission across.
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I would also like to compliment you Alice on the way you handled the BBC London interview. I thought you did exceptionally well to bring the interviewer (Barry Caffrey?) back to the retrospective planning application point. An interviewer has an objective and an agenda that does not always equate to their interviewees: you gave him a run for his money-well done.
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