Melanie Whitlock and I have tried very hard – since the beginning of the year – to secure a hustings for the people of Hammersmith to hear what the main candidates are offering us and ask them questions. There are so many issues that are important to us including of course housing, Heathrow, air quality, the Flyunder, plans for Hammersmith Broadway, tall buildings generally and much more . . . Regrettably although we had secured a venue, St Paul’s Church, and a chairman, Sarah Montague of the BBC Today programme, we have been unsuccessful in persuading either Zac or Sadiq to find time.

North Kensington Gate 2016

Kensington Gate: This is a site at the top (north) end of Scrubs Lane and is within the OPDC area and adjacent to the Car Giant site. We have been invited to view proposals which are an advanced pre-application stage. We do not know much of the detail except it involves a tower block of about 25 storeys.

OPDC : (See Newsletter Page 4) Also attached is the Society’s detailed response to the Draft Local Plan for the OPDC area. This involved a lot of analysis and attending copious briefing and discussion meetings. My thanks go to Melanie Whitlock and Angela Clarke for their help and support with this exercise. Our major concerns are spelt out in the Newsletter but if you would like to see what else we had to say, please take a look, although it only really makes sense if read it with the OPDC documents which can be viewed on line. We hope that our comments will help make the overall development a more humane environment for all who will live, work and visit there.

As I reported in my last News Update, the Cineworld Cinema is due to close imminently and work will start on its demolition. A planning application has now been received by the Council in respect of revised details for the housing and new offices on the west side of Nigel Playfair Avenue. The planning reference number is 2016/00619/VAR. The consultation period is open to 18 April. Your committee will be commenting. Initial indications are that not all the changes are positive unfortunately.

(See Newsletter Page 2) : An application has now been received by the Council. The planning reference no. is 2016/01230/FUL. The address on the application is given as 104 King Street.

Early indications are that it is similar to the 2013 application (Ref. 2013/01017/FUL) which local residents accepted. Is the latest application just keeping the existing one alive while new denser proposals are being considered? The consultation period is open until 26 April. Peter Raymond is Chairman of the Cambridge Grove and Leamore Street Residents’ Association.

Ref 2013/02238/FUL: Appeal in July

As local residents will be aware Linden Homes submitted a scheme (designed by Lifschutz Davidson Sandilands) for this peninsula site opposite Ravenscourt Park a couple of years ago.

After a planning forum it was refused permission by the Council. Linden submitted a revised scheme and again it was refused, chiefly on grounds of over-density and lack of affordable housing.

The Hammersmith Society objected on both occasions. Linden is appealing against the Council’s decision, the Hammersmith Society has been accepted by the Planning Inspectorate as a Rule 6 party to the appeal, meaning we prepare Proofs of Evidence and give evidence at the appeal. The appeal itself will be held at the Town Hall from Wednesday, 2nd July until Friday 4th  July. All welcome to observe.