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Dear Friend
Many thanks to everyone who came along and supported the campaign at the Judicial Review. We had great turn-out – over 40 people – many staying on to hear the case itself. Special thanks to Distriandina for a heartening breakfast!
Now we wait for Justice Dove’s decision, which should be in two or three weeks. In the meantime we must talk about what happens next. Whether we win our lose, there will be much to do, supporting the traders and fighting for an inclusive development that benefits local people.
We are therefore holding a public meeting on Tues 19 November, 7pm, Draper TRA Hall, Hampton Street Junction with Newington Butts
(next to the Santander bike stand) SE17 3AN, more details, including speakers, below – please join us!
Regards
Jerry
FB event and map here- please share
For updates go to https://twitter.com/UpTheElephant_
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Dear Friend
A reminder that developer Delancey’s destructive plans for the redevelopment of the Elephant shopping centre will be tested in court tomorrow.
Meet us for a solidarity breakfast of hot drinks and breakfast rolls from 7.30 am at Distriandina, Arch 6 Elephant Rd, just along from the Elephant overground station.
Our coach will stop to pick us up, then rolling round the corner to pick up people from the Metropolitan Tabernacle at 8am prompt.
To reserve a place on the coach please call or text 07792 786 192.
We will travel to the Royal Courts of Justice, the Strand, Holborn, London WC2A 2LL and have a demonstration of support at 9am. The case then starts at 10am. You can stay for as long as you wish – the case is open to the public.
Please join us and spread the word – Facebook event page here!
We want as many supporters as possible to come along, to show the strength of our campaign for more social housing and a better deal for traders and a better deal for the local community at the Elephant.
You can read more about our case here.
Hope to see you tomorrow!
Regards
Jerry
Oct 17, 2019 12:00 am
Legal challenge goes to court next week –
The legal battle to quash the planning permission for the demolition and redevelopment of the shopping centre reaches the High Court next week, when a judicial review hearing is scheduled for the 22 and 23 October, after being postponed from July. The challenge is supported by the Up the Elephant campaign, the Public Interest Law Centre and Southwark Law Centre, as well as by the 35% Campaign. The challenge will be presented by barristers Sarah Sackman of Francis Taylor Building and David Wolfe QC of Matrix Chambers.
A demonstration of support is being held on Tues 22 October 9am, outside the Royal Courts of Justice, Strand, WC2A 2LL. There is a free coach to the protest – departing 8am, from outside the Metropolitan Tabernacle, opposite the Northern line tube station (text/phone 07792786192 to reserve a place).
The High Court will decide whether or not Southwark Council’s decision to award planning permission to offshore developer Delancey was lawful. Delancey proposes to build shops, homes and much else besides, including a new Northern Line tube entrance and new college campus for the London College of Communication. But Delancey’s big plans have very little in them for local people, those who are living and working at the Elephant now.
The much-loved bingo hall has already gone and is unlikely to return. If the shopping centre is demolished it will displace all the traders from the world over who have made the Elephant their home. Demolition will also destroy a social hub for London’s Latin American community and nowhere near enough has been done to mitigate the consequences of this. Latin Elephant, with the help of Petit Elephant, have made a detailed study of what is happening to all the traders and they estimate that almost fifty traders have not been given relocation space and will have nowhere to go.
Latin Elephant’s detailed interactive map and list of traders with nowhere to go
While we are losing the small traders, Delancey’s ‘mixed-use’ development is denying us the one kind of housing we most need – social rented housing. The Up the Elephant campaign has gradually driven up Delancey’s social housing offer from 33 ‘social rent equivalent’ units to 116 proper social rent, but this is still a very small number out of the 979 total number of new homes.
Next week’s legal challenge will argue that Southwark’s Council’s planning committee was misled about the maximum amount of affordable housing the scheme could viably provide. Delancey said it could only afford to provide 116 social rented homes, but we now know that with Mayor’s funding they could give us another 42 much needed homes.
Even the 116 social rented homes promised could be at risk; the devil is in the detail and Delancey has managed to pull the wool over the Council’s eyes, with a legal (s106) agreement that could leave us with little or no social rented housing if Delancey chooses not to deliver the latter part of the scheme, which in any case is not due to be built for another 10 years.
We should be getting something much better than this. The regeneration of the Elephant has already lost us over a thousand council homes, from the demolished Heygate estate. The shopping centre is the last major site within the Elephant and Castle Opportunity Area – it should be making up much more of these losses. The benefits of the redevelopment in the shape of the new tube station and new college campus should not be at the expense of social rented housing.
The Up the Elephant campaign has fought tirelessly for nearly 3 years to get more social rented housing and a better deal for the independent traders; it has shown that we can make gains. As well as the extra social housing, traders have got more affordable retail space, a relocation fund and a temporary facility on Castle Square – but it is not enough to make Delancey’s development one that really benefits everyone at the Elephant.
So, please join us on 22 October to show your support for our battle!
Text/phone 07792 786192 to reserve a coach place.
You can still also donate to our crowdfunding appeal
For a brief history of the controversy surrounding Delancey’s scheme, check out part 1 of Emile Burgoyne’s recently released film – ‘Why do Elephants keep developing?’](https://youtu.be/EQ2M6_vQo2s):
Change of date for the Old Kent Road Social Regeneration Charter consultation workshops
Yesterday we invited you to our upcoming consultation workshops being held at 231 Old Kent Road. Unfortunately we have had to change one of the consultation dates.
The new consultations dates are
Please note that the event planned for Saturday 19 October will no longer take place.
We apologise for any inconvenience caused by this change.
If you would like to attend one of these sessions, please email us at planningpolicy@southwark.gov.uk.
More details about the consultation events can be found on the Old Kent Road website: https://oldkentroad.org.uk/okrsrc/.
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