As Brent Planning Committee prepares for TWO meetings next week, both with controversial multi-million pound applciations, Denise Cheong updates Wembley Matters readers on the 'Twin Tower' development recently approved by the Committee but opposed by residents:
Dear Wembley Matters Readers
From reading comments on Wembley Matters there seems to be a lot of concern around Planning Applications and Planning Committees in Brent. Wembley Champions and Wembley Central Ward Cllr Stopp have been in correspondence with the Leader.
Cllr Butt, has come back to us with a view to holding a "town hall" style meeting with residents.
The below is the latest correspondence Wembley Champions sent to the Brent Council Leader on 3rd May 2016:
Dear Muhammed (& Cllr Stopp and Cllr McLennan)
Many thanks for your email. We residents appreciate you taking the time to correspond with us and are very grateful that you, as Leader of the Council, are always available to attend meetings to listen to our concerns.
Thank you for enclosing a link to the report which mentions the consultation that was carried out and the responses received. From our resident perspective, whilst the Council consulted circa 400 addresses (consultee list enclosed), only half of our cul-de-sac Princes Court was formally consulted (Key opponents of planning application 14/4208 were excluded from the consultation, yet historically those addresses were consulted for other planning applications at the Chesterfield House site), as you are aware from your correspondence with your Tokyngton ward consituent Jonathan Strange of South Meadows Ltd, only a dozen of their thirty addresses were formally consulted. Also of Park Lawns, zero addresses were formally consulted.
These are just some of your Brent residents who were excluded from the consultation process. As a case example, resident friends on Dennis Avenue and Castleton Avenue have voiced grave concerns as to the likely impact on them of this large scale planning application that they knew nothing about until speaking with us.
In addition, the case officer's Committee Report was only made available on the Council's website, as a link in the 6th April 2016 Planning Committee Agenda, shortly before the Planning Committee's site visit. Whilst other documents on the Council's website pertaining to planning application 15/4550 were intermittently unavailable to download for days. This makes it extremely difficult, nigh impossible, for us residents to make any comment on a planning application of any scale, let alone a large scale development such as this.
A further point of concern with regards to the consultation process is that those who submitted objections to the Council were told in writing that the Planning Committee's site visit would be at 10.05am (Site Visit Notification enclosed), yet the visit was carried out at 9.40am on Saturday 2nd April 2016, as stated in the Planning Committee's Agenda (enclosed) on the Council's website. This incorrect dissemination of information prevented residents who formally objected from attending the Planning Committee's site visit at the relevant time.
Thank you for asking if there is anything specific that I would like you to pick up in the meantime before our meeting. At our last residents meeting, we residents brainstormed the following:
List of Council Officers, Councillors and Community Stakeholders we would like to attend meeting:
Planning Case Officer
Senior Planner (in place of Head of Planning who we understand is no longer in post)
Head of Regeneration
Head of Housing
Head of Parks
Head of Public Realm
Director of Regeneration & Environment
Head of Transport & Parking
All Wembley Central, Preston and Tokyngton Ward Councillors
Lead Member for Housing
Lead Member for Environment
Lead Member for Stronger Communities
Lead Member for Scrutiny Committee
GLA elected Brent and Harrow Member (if the meeting is after the May 5th elections)
Wembley Central Ward Panel - Safer Neighbourhoods Team
Metropolitan Police Commissioner
These are the documents we feel would assist at our meeting:
All documents pertaining to planning application 15/4550
Brent Council's Core Strategy, Unitary Development Plan, Supplementary Planning Document, Mayor's London Plan, National Planning Policy, Wembley Area Action Plan
Any other documents pertaining to the Council's vision for development and regeneration along High Road Wembley from Ealing Road, past Wembley Triangle to Wembley Stadium
In terms of where and when our meeting could be held:
We do not have a preference of location other than an easily accessible Wembley based location
We would like the meeting to be held in the evening preferably after 7.45pm (if possible) as many of us work during the day
In terms of outcomes that would or could be:
1) We would like the Council to allow the Mayor of London to call-in planning application 15/4550 and gather the results of the survey consultation Cllrs Stopp and Sheth have proposed.
2) We would like the Council to reform their planning practices as:
a) it is not the first occassion where residents have felt they were not consulted fairly or
b) were consulted at what appear to be strategic times of the year when holidays such as Easter and Christmas mean many
residents are absent and therefore prevented from formally commenting on planning applications.
3) An action plan for the future for Brent residents to make planning in Brent more open, transparent and accountable
Thanks once again for taking the time to address our concerns and come back to us. We look forward to hearing from you.
Kind regards
Denise
Denise Cheong
on behalf of:
Resident Members of Princes Court and Keswick Gardens Residents Association
Park Lawns Residents Association
South Meadows Limited
Park Lane Methodist Church Representative
Representative Neighbours and Friends in King Edward Court and Neighbouring Wembley Streets
cc. Preston, Wembley Central and Tokyngton Ward Cllrs
Resident Representative Members of Princes Court and Keswick Gardens Residents Association
Resident Representative Members of Park Lawns Residents Association
Resident Representatives of South Meadows Limited
Representative Park Lane Methodist Church
Resident Representative Neighbours and Friends in King Edward Court and Neighbouring Wembley Streets
Wembley Champions
Friends of King Eddies Park
@WembleyChampion
Dear Wembley Matters Readers
From reading comments on Wembley Matters there seems to be a lot of concern around Planning Applications and Planning Committees in Brent. Wembley Champions and Wembley Central Ward Cllr Stopp have been in correspondence with the Leader.
Cllr Butt, has come back to us with a view to holding a "town hall" style meeting with residents.
The below is the latest correspondence Wembley Champions sent to the Brent Council Leader on 3rd May 2016:
Dear Muhammed (& Cllr Stopp and Cllr McLennan)
Many thanks for your email. We residents appreciate you taking the time to correspond with us and are very grateful that you, as Leader of the Council, are always available to attend meetings to listen to our concerns.
Thank you for enclosing a link to the report which mentions the consultation that was carried out and the responses received. From our resident perspective, whilst the Council consulted circa 400 addresses (consultee list enclosed), only half of our cul-de-sac Princes Court was formally consulted (Key opponents of planning application 14/4208 were excluded from the consultation, yet historically those addresses were consulted for other planning applications at the Chesterfield House site), as you are aware from your correspondence with your Tokyngton ward consituent Jonathan Strange of South Meadows Ltd, only a dozen of their thirty addresses were formally consulted. Also of Park Lawns, zero addresses were formally consulted.
These are just some of your Brent residents who were excluded from the consultation process. As a case example, resident friends on Dennis Avenue and Castleton Avenue have voiced grave concerns as to the likely impact on them of this large scale planning application that they knew nothing about until speaking with us.
In addition, the case officer's Committee Report was only made available on the Council's website, as a link in the 6th April 2016 Planning Committee Agenda, shortly before the Planning Committee's site visit. Whilst other documents on the Council's website pertaining to planning application 15/4550 were intermittently unavailable to download for days. This makes it extremely difficult, nigh impossible, for us residents to make any comment on a planning application of any scale, let alone a large scale development such as this.
A further point of concern with regards to the consultation process is that those who submitted objections to the Council were told in writing that the Planning Committee's site visit would be at 10.05am (Site Visit Notification enclosed), yet the visit was carried out at 9.40am on Saturday 2nd April 2016, as stated in the Planning Committee's Agenda (enclosed) on the Council's website. This incorrect dissemination of information prevented residents who formally objected from attending the Planning Committee's site visit at the relevant time.
Thank you for asking if there is anything specific that I would like you to pick up in the meantime before our meeting. At our last residents meeting, we residents brainstormed the following:
List of Council Officers, Councillors and Community Stakeholders we would like to attend meeting:
Planning Case Officer
Senior Planner (in place of Head of Planning who we understand is no longer in post)
Head of Regeneration
Head of Housing
Head of Parks
Head of Public Realm
Director of Regeneration & Environment
Head of Transport & Parking
All Wembley Central, Preston and Tokyngton Ward Councillors
Lead Member for Housing
Lead Member for Environment
Lead Member for Stronger Communities
Lead Member for Scrutiny Committee
GLA elected Brent and Harrow Member (if the meeting is after the May 5th elections)
Wembley Central Ward Panel - Safer Neighbourhoods Team
Metropolitan Police Commissioner
These are the documents we feel would assist at our meeting:
All documents pertaining to planning application 15/4550
Brent Council's Core Strategy, Unitary Development Plan, Supplementary Planning Document, Mayor's London Plan, National Planning Policy, Wembley Area Action Plan
Any other documents pertaining to the Council's vision for development and regeneration along High Road Wembley from Ealing Road, past Wembley Triangle to Wembley Stadium
In terms of where and when our meeting could be held:
We do not have a preference of location other than an easily accessible Wembley based location
We would like the meeting to be held in the evening preferably after 7.45pm (if possible) as many of us work during the day
In terms of outcomes that would or could be:
1) We would like the Council to allow the Mayor of London to call-in planning application 15/4550 and gather the results of the survey consultation Cllrs Stopp and Sheth have proposed.
2) We would like the Council to reform their planning practices as:
a) it is not the first occassion where residents have felt they were not consulted fairly or
b) were consulted at what appear to be strategic times of the year when holidays such as Easter and Christmas mean many
residents are absent and therefore prevented from formally commenting on planning applications.
3) An action plan for the future for Brent residents to make planning in Brent more open, transparent and accountable
Thanks once again for taking the time to address our concerns and come back to us. We look forward to hearing from you.
Kind regards
Denise
Denise Cheong
on behalf of:
Resident Members of Princes Court and Keswick Gardens Residents Association
Park Lawns Residents Association
South Meadows Limited
Park Lane Methodist Church Representative
Representative Neighbours and Friends in King Edward Court and Neighbouring Wembley Streets
cc. Preston, Wembley Central and Tokyngton Ward Cllrs
Resident Representative Members of Princes Court and Keswick Gardens Residents Association
Resident Representative Members of Park Lawns Residents Association
Resident Representatives of South Meadows Limited
Representative Park Lane Methodist Church
Resident Representative Neighbours and Friends in King Edward Court and Neighbouring Wembley Streets
Wembley Champions
Friends of King Eddies Park
@WembleyChampion