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Proposed South End Green peace garden land |
‘Let’s say our piece on garden’
Station development bid
ONLY one person in a meeting to discuss plans to build a peace garden in South End Green said they were aware of a planning application put in last year.
The discussion at the Magdala Arms pub in South Hill Park on Thursday night was called by people concerned with designs for a patch of land next to Hampstead Heath train station. South End Green estate agent Jonathan Bergman has been running a charitable project to buy the land. An architect has designed a wall decked with ceramic tiles, carrying individual messages on the topic of world peace, to snake along the plot’s boundary. They are to cost £250 each and the money will go towards funding the project.
But while Camden Council’s planning committee waved through the design, neighbours say they were unaware how far the project had progressed – and want the scheme radically scaled down. A show of hands at the meeting revealed that of the 70 people, only one person said they were aware a planning application had gone in – or that it had been passed.
Art teacher Peter Dockley, who lives near the patch of land, organised the meeting.
He said: “We were delighted with the number of people who showed up – it shows the depth of feeling over this.”
The meeting resolved that a working party should be established to contact Mr Bergman, to make sure their views are known – and try to persuade him to re-think the design.
Mr Dockley added; “To put these large structures there is wrong. They are overbearing and out of character. It is just way out of scale.”
His views have been echoed by Deborah Golden, the former owner of Gallery 12, an art space opposite the peace garden.
She said: “There are concerns over safety. Women fear if there is a structure, people could hide there, or use the space to take drugs.”
She added that the consensus of the meeting was that people were interested in the idea of the peace garden but did not want a wall, walkway or ceramic tiles with soundbites about world peace.
Mr Bergman said he would be happy to meet and discuss any issues those opposing the scheme have.
He added: “We must remain open to everyone’s views, especially the local community here in South Hill Park. The professional team will continue to discuss people’s design ideas in a positive manner within the framework of the planning permission in place.”
Mr Bergman said the scheme had been in the public domain for more than a year and insisted issues over crime had also been considered by the council’s planning committee and the police. |
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