We welcome as members individuals and organisations who care for Hammersmith
As a Member, you will receive at least two printed newsletters and regular email updates each year, outlining our activities, and giving you the opportunity to participate in our campaigns. Members are always encouraged to take an active part in the work done by the committee – come along and see if you can help.
The membership year runs from 1st January, and only costs £6 for individuals £8 for couples or families, and £15 for organisations. Additional voluntary donations are always welcome.
Olympia redevelopment, and immediate surrounding area, Avonmore & Brook Green: Avonmore and Brook Green Ward.
Councillors:
Harvey,
Morton, and
Smith
The Council is struggling to finance the upkeep of its school estate, a portfolio which includes over forty primary schools. Limited funds have been available since the government Building Schools for the Future programme was terminated in 2010, and in March last year the Council introduced a “Community Schools Programme”, proposing to finance the improvement works by the building of affordable housing on school grounds. The programme starts with Flora Gardens and Avonmore Primary Schools.
Flora Gardens School Site
We are concerned at the direction of this policy: the unquestionable priority of good public education facilities does not justify the loss of public open space.
Public open space is sacred, it is a rare and precious commodity, and the acceptance of a practice which permanently removes the open space to alleviate a temporary financial shortfall is a mistake: it erodes the quality of our urban surroundings to the detriment of the public realm, and removes potential sites for future social facilities such as youth clubs and provision for the elderly, but also removes spare capacity essential to accommodate the likely increase in space requirements arising from the current review of school standards.
Continued →
Developers’ teams remain busy during lockdown. Last week we reported on the planning application for 181 Talgarth Road, with nearly 130 application documents and reports prepared and coordinated by a team operating from their home based computers – a remarkable feat.
Olympia theatre – as submitted for planning
In April the Society joined an on-line consultation meeting when the Olympia development team presented their draft proposals due to be submitted shortly to amend the original approved scheme. We have been following their progress on the design of the theatre on the southwest corner of Olympia, and the scheme has greatly improved, now providing a lively and interesting façade to introduce Olympia on the Hammersmith Road frontage. Details of the submission should be available on the LBHF planning website shortly.
We are expecting further news about the Triangle development on Beadon Road, after the developer held an uninformative public exhibition in March to show a proposal for a combination of hotel and office uses in the new building.
The huge Earls Court site is now in the hands of developers Delancey, who have invited the committee to an introductory presentation to take place in the near future. This of course is likely to be on-line, given the circumstances, or much delayed.
Our 12-page newsletter has been published, and printed copies circulated to subscribing members. Subjects include:
If you’re not yet a member, please join us to receive our latest newsletter. All newsletters that are available to download can be found here
We were pleased to announce our 2019 Awards at the AGM at Olympia on Wednesday 12th June, introduced by committee member Derrick Wright and presented by our President, Prof. Hans Haenlein. The large number of members present were provided excellent hospitality by Olympia in their Apex Room. Full details and a narrative are posted on our 2019 Awards page; the AGM photos and administrative documents are posted on our 2019 AGM page.
In our 30th year of Awards, we renamed our Conservation Award the Tom Ryland Award for Conservation in honour of our past Chairman. We were delighted to present it for the first time to St. Augustine’s Church in Fulham Palace Road.
There were four Nancye Goulden Awards this year, in two distinct pairs, all are projects which have made positive contributions to the Hammersmith streetscape.
The first two are King Street shop fronts: Paintbox Studios and Coffeeology. The other two awards recognise another type of improvement to the streetscape in the form of the Hammersmith Grove Parklets and The Planting under the Flyover. The wooden spoon went to phase 1 of Sovereign Court.
We were also given a detailed presentation by SSPARC architects covering the history of Olympia and the extensive redevelopment plans, followed by an update from RSHP architects covering the Town Hall redevelopment plans. In a Q&A session, Councillor Wesley Harcourt kindly gave us an impromptu update on the Hammersmith Bridge situation.
The Special 20-page Anniversary Newsletter has been published, celebrating 30 years of Hammersmith Society Awards. Printed copies are being distributed to subscribing members.
In this edition, as well as news stories, we discuss some recurring themes in a little more depth. Subjects include:
If you’re not yet a member, please join us to receive our latest newsletter. All newsletters that are available to download can be found here
(Click on images for full-sized versions, then scroll through the set)
The big and complex application for redevelopment of the 14 acre site, which includes a cluster of Listed Buildings, was approved by the Council’s Planning Committee on 30 January, having been been given a very speedy journey through the planning process.
In our view it was not fully ready to be approved, and we had hoped to gain some modifications on height and architectural detail. There are also serious concerns about how the local area will cope with the numbers of additional workers and visitors to the exhibition halls and performance spaces, while TfL has stated that there is no prospect of extending regular District Line service to Kensington Olympia station in the immediate future, and adjacent bus routes have been recently curtailed.
In our comments we stated that the new development would breathe new life into a very special part of Hammersmith. But the proposed theatre block on Hammersmith Road, the height of the central office building rising above the original Olympia buildings, and the Thomas Heatherwick – designed hotel extension on the south-east corner, which will date very quickly, should have been given more time and thought to get right.
The 12-page Autumn Newsletter has been published and circulated to subscribing members. Subjects include:
If you’re not yet a member, please join us to receive our latest newsletter. All newsletters that are available to download can be found here
This site (between Hammersmith Library and the Broadway) is a 1960s office building, and developers are proposing to re-clad it and remodel the interior as a Premier Inn hotel. Members of the Committee attended an exhibition of plans.
The scheme does not involve redevelopment from the ground up so offers limited scope for a major improvement to the street scene, however we consider that the proposals are particularly bland and an opportunity has been missed to make a positive contribution to Shepherds Bush Road. We will be asking for improvements to the design. The developer’s illustration is shown above.
Small Sites policy in the new London Plan
Today’s #archivejigsaw is a London Underground poster for the 1910 Japan-British exhibition held in London. The exhibition was an attempt by Japan to introduce its culture to the West, and included Japanese gardens with imported trees, bridges and stones: orlo.uk/ACsMS
— Hammersmith Society @(HammersmithSoc) 2 days ago
We are pleased to announce that the new @LidlGB store will be opening in Kings Mall on Thursday 11th March. 🛒 🛍️ Read the full announcement here ⤵️ bit.ly/3bhb87q
— Hammersmith Society @(HammersmithSoc) 10 hours ago
@grantshapps @CharlotteV And #hammersmithbridge - of course !
— Hammersmith Society @(HammersmithSoc) 13 hours ago
©2021, The Hammersmith Society | Privacy | Contact | Join | @ Subscribe | ⓘ
Campaigning for over 50 years