Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
Finsbury Park's Twin Towers
Further to our report on the City North development back in 2008, the plans have now been given planning approval by Islington Council.
City North will include shops and offices and will tower 106 metres above Finsbury Park station. It is the largest regeneration scheme in Islington since Arsenal's Emirates Stadium.
It is the brainchild of Jack Morris, multi-millionaire chairman of the Business Design Centre, and was approved by Islington council last week.
Mr Morris told a planning committee: "The planning brief was to produce a landmark transformational scheme that would kick-start the regeneration of Finsbury Park."
City North will include shops and offices and will tower 106 metres above Finsbury Park station. It is the largest regeneration scheme in Islington since Arsenal's Emirates Stadium.
It is the brainchild of Jack Morris, multi-millionaire chairman of the Business Design Centre, and was approved by Islington council last week.
Mr Morris told a planning committee: "The planning brief was to produce a landmark transformational scheme that would kick-start the regeneration of Finsbury Park."
Tags for Forum Posts: city north, finsbury park town
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by pamish on
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Aaaaaargh. 'bold vertical elements to establish its presence' .... why can't they just own up and say, we need to stick up as many floors as we can without the whole damn thing sinking through to China, so we can make as much profit per square foot of soil as is inhumanly possible?
Ken Livingstone's biggest mistake - bigger even than the olympics - glorying in huge high-rises as the way forward for London, and the stupid London Plan that followed.
Freud would have plenty to say. Jung, too.
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Permalink Reply by John McMullan on
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If I was Haringey council I would be eyeing the medium density housing in Harringay and licking my lips. It could be demolished street by street and "beautiful" high rises like this built, as well as a new secondary school "academy". Think how many workers we could house then comrade! And all built by the capitalists!
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Permalink Reply by Clive Carter on
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John I think the ladder may safe from this particular kind of development. The background to this is the desire/encouragement of the planning authorities to "mass" by the major transport nexus in London. At least, I think that was the term used by an architect friend (he may have said 'anchor', 'cluster', 'hub' or 'gateway').
It is the thinking behind the permission (flawed, IMO) granted to Grainger plc to build a big generic unlovely development on top and around Seven Sisters Station that would lead to the demolition of the Edwardian Wards Corner department store. This is being rammed through by LBH against much local opposition.
Haringey Council had plans to build over one third of Down Lane Park in Tottenham until it was opposed by locals, especially the Friends of Down Lane Park, led by Seamus Carey. (BTW, DLP is a green park, not a car park).
Now Haringey has plans to let a developer build over land in Crouch End which is currently a car park but which in the future could become a green park. The land in question is behind the art deco Hornsey Town Hall and would naturally form a fine curtilage for one of the few Grade II* buildings in our Borough.
According to the council's own excellent contour map of open space deficiency, this area by the centre of Crouch End is at a point of maximum open space deprivation.
Haringey Council appears to want to build over almost any open space going and even over existing parks and potential parks. This from the council that had an ambition to be the greenest in London. No one in the council seems to want to protect green or open space and only locals can and will oppose.
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Using the tube as a magnet for yuppies (is that still a viable concept?) is fast becoming a huge fraud. Already it's impossible to get on the tube at Seven Sisters for about two hours in the morning, except for the ones that start at 7Sisters - carriages are crammed full with commuters who get on at Tottenham Hale after coming in on trains from Hertford and points north. The planned solution to this - take out most of the seats.
Grainger has the fabulous concept of selling 200 dwellings at £300k plus, to pay for the alleged extra cost of the complex engineering involved in building on top of a station (ie over a big hole in the ground). And they are relying on attracting high street retailers like, oh, Woolworths, and Zavvi, into the row of shops not unlike those five mnutes' walk away at Tottenham Hale.
I believe Seven Sisters and Tottenham Green wards have the smallest amount of green space per head in the UK. If I'm wrong it's close. What 'green space' there is is in strips alongside stinking roads. Except there will be a nice gated play area on the roof of the grainger monster, for the offspring of those 300k-to-spare incomers.
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Permalink Reply by Alan Stanton on
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"Kickstart the regeneration of Finsbury Park"? Well, much the same was said about the regeneration of Tottenham Hale following the fabulous Hale Village site. In fact exactly the same was said.
"This scheme demonstrates how imaginative private sector investment can generate a mixed and sustainable development. The project will at the same time set a new and higher quality benchmark for future investment in the area and kick start the regeneration of Tottenham Hale.
Fabulous because it's all true? Or perhaps in the literal sense that it's mythical and imaginary?
Time will tell. Though a village it ain't.
(Labour councillor & candidate Tottenham Hale ward.)
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Permalink Reply by james walsh on
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Alan. Should Hale village be re-named Hell Village ? as in tottenham Hell.
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Now then, James, please don't start bad-mouthing Tottenham Hale.
As I'm sure you know, the area along the river, the Marshes, the Paddock, Ferry Lane and nearby are attractive, often surprising and sometimes beautiful. Elegant, well-designed towers are fine in the right place. The River Lee at Tottenham is not it.
(Labour councillor & candidate Tottenham Hale ward.)
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Permalink Reply by StephenBln on
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Alan, the Lee/Lea looks a lot better than it did 35-50 years ago.. and in those days it smelt of a strange mixture of barge fuel and wood..
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I agree Alan. I was at the marshes the other day - the part by Stonebridge Lock, with the canoe & cycle centre, (I think this bit might be just inside Northumberland Park Ward?) ...that whole area is greatly improved from when I used to spend time there as a kid. The Waters Edge cafe is great, and some of the barges are really beautiful
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What's fabulous is the Section 106 paired development for the Tottnm Hale site ie the equivalent number of social housing Units that should follow. I hear the developers have reneged on this agreement as they have gone bust, Alan can you update us on this?
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Lee Valley Estates very definitely have not gone bust. However, the Section 106 (planning gain money) is still due, but as yet unpaid. Apparently this is still subject to negotiation.
The social housing units will be built - with public money - by Newlon Housing Trust.
My late dad was fond of telling a story about the time he phoned up his bank to ask why they hadn't sent the usual Christmas bottle of whisky. Wasn't he a long-standing and valued customer? They explained that he no longer owed them a huge sum of money.
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