Islington Tribune - News: Homes campaigner face ace lawyer, Keith Lindblom

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Islington Tribune - by TOM FOOT
Published: 4 April 2008

Homes campaigners face ace lawyer

HOUSING campaigners fighting the £2 billion development of King’s Cross this week locked horns with the most feared planning lawyer in the country.
The King’s Cross Railway Lands Group and Cally Rail Group (CRG) were grilled by Keith Lindblom, QC, over objections to plans for 246 affordable homes on a patch of former railway land, off York Way, known as The Triangle.
In a recent poll of legal aces he was named the “out-and-out best advocate for planning inquiries”, and hailed as a “ruthless cross-examiner”. Developer Argent has hired his services for a planning inquiry held this week in a conference centre in Ronalds Road, Holloway.
It is appealing against a decision to throw out its plans last year because they did not provide enough affordable housing.
Mr Lindblom quizzed CRG chairwoman Diana Shelley over her claims that the site was not suitable for housing.
She said: “We as a group welcome housing developments, but Argent is proposing to place the homes in the worst possible position.”
Ms Shelley maintained that the site was plagued by noise problems, with Channel Tunnel and Thameslink trains running through the night.
She said trucks dumping tonnes of rubble at the nearby Cemex plant made a sound like someone repeatedly “throwing stones into a tin box”.
Planning inspector David Lavender is expected to give his decision on the appeal by the end of next week.

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