Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
The Hell that is Wood Green
Yesterday, I had the misfortune to find myself in the shopping mall. Walking out the big automatic doors and into the crowd of Star Wars pub extras who were smoking, spitting and squabbling on the footpath I witnessed what for me sums up the whole carbuncle on the arse of Haringey that is Wood Green High Road. One of the characters stormed through the crowd with his status dog in tow. I was reflecting on the fact that ‘status’ dogs don't seem to work (as the people who have them only ever seem to be what everyone else in society would consider low status). Everything suddenly went quiet except the ever present sirens. The status dog had stopped and released its copious bowels all over the footpath. It was like turning on the light in an HMO; the cockroaches screamed and scattered. The dog owner laughed and walked on. It was probably one of the most disgusting things I have seen or smelt in London. Eventually the crowd returned and watched the next horde trample the mess up and down the road. There was no-one to turn to, no-one to clean up and more importantly no-one with the authority to challenge and/or shoot the dog owner. Things just returned to normal.
The whole experience made me think how the council, local police and traders believe that we're all animals if they are happy for us to have to deal with this every time we go to the High Road. It's easy enough for me to hop on a bus and head off to Crouch End or Islington or even Enfield to shop but if you're older or disabled and have trouble getting around or not enough money for the bus it must be pretty grim to face it every day. Imagine how the standard little old lady dreads heading out into the crowds, litter, phlegm, smoke and anti-social behaviour of Wood Green every morning to get the milk.
Short of manning water cannons at each end of the High Road and employing some mercenaries with batons to control the crowds, I don’t know what can be done. Are there any clever ‘nudges’ or interventions that could improve Wood Green? Is it a matter of tarting the place up and hoping that the crowds respect their new surroundings? Is it signage to remind, and in many instances educate, people that spitting, littering and barging into other people is just not the done thing? Or do we just give up, bulldoze the lot and install a waterhole in the middle and let the law of the jungle and the status dog owners prevail?
Replies to This Discussion
-
Permalink Reply by Alan Stanton on
-
Yeah, I get the picture.
But I'm still curious about the offensive smell in Wood Green library.
-
Permalink Reply by Jamie To on
-
Wow! I agree with you totally TBD! Well said. Or the ones who have their rent paid by the council who stay up all night blasting the music so they can keep all us hard working people up because they do not have to work the next day like the rest of us?
-
Permalink Reply by Lydia R on
-
"It's amazing how many proud French people chose to live in ... London."
But isn't there something missing here, FPR? You forgot to add to that nasty little dig the instruction to "Go back to your own country".
Lydia Rivlin — so nauseated by vote rigging in the wards, venality in the Council, shenanigans in the Planning Department and disorganisation in the Social Services, that I signed up to fight it all by becoming a Conservative candidate in the May elections. One thing about the Tories—they haven’t been corrupted by power round here.
No-one told me to write this but since I am now an official candidate in the upcoming elections, I am legally obliged to put an imprint under everything I write in the public domain (as below).
Promoted by Justin Hinchcliffe on behalf of Lydia Rivlin, Massimo Rossini, Sean Rivers and Harringay Conservatives, all at 178 Walpole Road, London, N17 6BW
-
Permalink Reply by Clive Carter on
-
Bonjour TBD!
Je dis, Aux armes, citoyens, Formez vos bataillons, Marchons, marchons !
-
-
TBD!
That's Haringey for you. The house down the road from me rents bedsits to people that other boroughs do not want in theirs like Enfield and Hackney. Only Haringey would do this. No other borough would take them so lets move them to Haringey.
Barnet Council, Brent Council and others clamp down on people converting houses to bedsits without planning permission. So why are Haringey not doing the same? Because they need more accommodation to bring in unwanted people from other boroughs.
-
Permalink Reply by SarahC on
-
The weird thing about the southern half of the High Road, though, is the complete lack of entertainment and things to do (apart from the events held by the excellent bookshop). It's not just that there are no pubs/restaurants/venues of the type that I'd go to, it's that there seem to be none of them at all. I've lived here for seven years and never once has it occurred to me to go to Wood Green in the evening except to go to Sainsbury's.
-
Permalink Reply by doug on
-
Laura, Check out Karamel for live music, not sure what your tastes are but they do a range of live music, from Jazz, Folk, World etc... Chris Difford from Squeeze is a regular visitor, as is Matt Deighton (Oasis stand in) and Chris Helme of SeaHorses.
Did you know REM recorded their second album in Wood Green, as did the Smiths record Panic. REM didn't rate Wood Green, but I love it.
Another did you know... Wood Green High St has the second largest footfall in London, behind Oxford Street. We have shoppers from all over London, we even have to put up with visitors from Harringay desperately searching for flat whites and artisan loaves with no luck. I point them in the direction of Crouch End when they ask.
-
Permalink Reply by Liz on
-
Can you not get a flat white in the Coffee Republic near Spouter's Corner? Or am I imagining that? And what exactly is an 'artisan loaf' ?
-
-
If you can't get a white that's flat enough ask to speak to Lina the owner. Or her son - I think his name is George. Here's Lina outside in the midst of doing battle with Veolia about street litter and dumped rubbish.
Or if you need a larger and completely free flat white, here's one I prepared earlier.
-
-
You may well be able to get a flat white there Liz, I drink black coffee, and don't get me started on when people ask if I mean Americano!
As for Artisan Loaf - I have no idea, it's just a term I hear banded about by those in search of gentrification. Next time I'm in Greggs, I'll ask!
© 2024 Created by Hugh.
Powered by
