Green+Spaces+-+General+News+and+Updates+-+Down+Lane+Park+Friends+Victory!+(3.2010)

__ www.fdlp.org.uk __ 1. Statement from Haringey Council 2. Statement from Friends of Down Lane Park 3. Statement from Chesnuts Area Residents Association officers
 * Down Lane Park Friends Victory! Developers out, improvements in... **

http://www.haringey.gov.uk/index/news_and_events/latest_news/down-lane-improvements.htm
 * Developers out and thousands of pounds improvements for Down Lane Park**

Wednesday 17 March 2010

Down Lane Park in Tottenham Hale will not be used for a new housing development and will instead receive over £250,000 for improvement works, residents heard this week.

At the Tottenham and Seven Sisters Area Assembly on Monday, Haringey Council Leader Claire Kober said that new housing would be confined to existing developed land in the area and that Down Lane Park improvement works will begin immediately, subject to Cabinet approval next week.

The southern part of Down Lane Park had been identified as a potential site for new housing as part of one of two development options for the Ashley Road area of Tottenham Hale. This option - the Park 'land swap' - meant parkland would be released for new homes with a corresponding extension of the park on the north side.

The other option was to develop new homes, business space, shops and community facilities solely on existing developed land - including the site occupied by the reuse and recycling depot on Ashley Road/Park View Road.

The response to public consultation overwhelmingly opposed the 'land swap' option in favour of option two.

Leader Claire Kober, said:

"We had a great response to the public consultation and I promised this would influence the recommendation to the council's Cabinet. That so, with the vast majority of residents favouring retention and improvement of all the park land, the recommendation to Cabinet next week will be to focus new development on existing developed land, retaining all the park."

The council received 225 responses to the consultation leaflet, and two public meetings were attended by over 50 people with two petitions received with a total of approximately 607 signatures opposing the "land swap" option.

Subject to Cabinet approval, plans to improve the Park can be taken forward in conjunction with the Friends of Down Lane Park.

The first phase of improvements, with allocated funding totalling £255,000, can go ahead straightaway with the detailed measures to be designed and agreed with the Friends of the Park.

Further improvements will be dependent on securing additional funding, including from developments (via section 106) in the Tottenham Hale area.

A detailed analysis of the consultation responses is available.

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 * Friends call off lobby of the Council**

Haringey Council through Ken Pryor’s email below rules out Friends of Down Lane Park deputation to next Mondays Council meeting. Instead they say that we could go as a deputation to the Cabinet meeting the following evening. Our committee discussed this and decided to **call off our proposed deputation to the Council meeting next Monday**. We also decided against going to the Cabinet at this stage.

We sent in our petition of 617 signatures in late February so that the Cabinet could count them in the consultation response and so bring about the right decision. This indeed is about to happen. There is nothing further to be gained at the Cabinet this side of the election.

The Cabinet is going to agree on Tuesday next that there will be no building on the park and that a new natural play area with monies £170,000 (agreed in February 2010) plus £85,000 (agreed last May) can **go ahead immediately**. See Haringey's website __ http://www.haringey.gov.uk/index/news_and_events/latest_news/down-lane-improvements.htm __.


 * Friends of Down Lane Park have achieved this outcome through**

- the 617 petitions we collected at festivals ,meeting local people in the park & high road, knocking at doors etc. - persuading the majority of respondents to the consultation to vote with us - our activities over the last three years

Friends of Down Lane are delighted by this news. We very much welcome both decisions. It signals the beginning of far better park facilities for local people.

We shall continue to press for funds especially S106 monies, mentioned in the Cabinet report, to create more play and sports facilities and fulfill our vision for the park. (See website __ www.fdlp.org.uk __)

Seamus Carey Co-ordinator, Friends of Down Lane Park


 * Open letter to Haringey Council, all Residents of Tottenham / Haringey and for the information of FDLP & HFRA..**

Subject: Good News at last: There will be No Building of Housing on Down Lane Park N17 as all at Tottenham & Seven Sisters Area Assembly are told publicly by the Leader Cllr Kober on 15th March 2010

Information for Press Releases

I (Cllr Sheik Thompson for Tottenham Hale Ward) and two people who raised these questions concerning about Down Lane Park in particular were assured by the Leader of the Council, Councillor Clare Kober at the Tottenham and Seven sisters Area Assembly last night on 15th March 2010 that the Council would not now be building houses anywhere on Down Lane Park N17, they would ratify this decision at the next Cabinet Meeting on 23rd March 2010 the day after the next Full Council Meeting on the 22nd of March. This will also be the last Full Council Meeting before the Local Elections on the 6th May 2010.

There were two members of CARA N17 (Chesnut Area Residents Association – N17) who are also founding members of the FDLP (Friends of Down Lane Park) and who live very close indeed to this Park got a chance to ask the Leader.

Mrs Kyoko Thompson asked the Leader, “Why have the Council chosen Down Lane Park in Tottenham for the plan to build houses? Please respect the people’s will and not turn Down Lane Park into yet another housing estate particularly in Tottenham where there is so little green area and public park space.”

The Leader replied to Mrs Kyoko Thompson “There is not going to be any building houses on the Park, and that that will be publicly and officially ratified at the next Cabinet Meeting on the day after Full Council to effect.

When the Leader was further pressed for clarity by Ms Pamela Wilson, Secretary of CARA N17 for clearer answer, Cllr Kober stressed and reiterated that there would not build any housing anywhere on Down Lane Park.

This is exactly what I always wanted and fought against all obstacles to get for the Community, and felt relieved and vindicated in my determined campaign to get this result even without my motion on the matter being fully discussed, aired and voted on at Full Council on Monday 22nd of March; as it may now not be heard due to the Council protocols and filibuster which prevail. Nevertheless, I believe for those who have yet to read my motion on this matter to the Council, it is as follows.

//" Housing in Down Lane Park// //This Council: opposes any proposal to build housing in Down Lane Park, including the area that now has the children’s playground, nursery and sports facilities; rejects the idea that such a proposal could be justified by sections of land being added as recompense at the other end of the park; resolves to a) adopt the principle that park land is sacrosanct, and should not be sacrificed to meet the pressure for new housing in Haringey; and b) reiterates its commitment to the 2006 Tottenham Hale Master plan to create “a new children’s play area and new youth facilities”//

Proposed by Cllr Sheik G.L.Thompson, Seconded by Cllr Fiyaz Mughal

Furthermore I reject all attempts at subterfuge and compromising options, and seriously regret that significant sums of the money and time have been wasted on an utterly pointless consultation on this whole matter.

Thank you and God Bless,

Best,

Yours respectfully,

Cllr Sheik G.L.Thompson, Independent Councillor for Tottenham Hale Ward, Chairman of Chesnut Area Residents Association (CARA N17) Ms Pamela Willson, Secretary of Chesnut Area Residents Association (CARA N17) Mrs Kyoko Thompson, Committee member of Chesnut Area Residents Association (CARA N17)