Loughborough Junction chitter-chatter

[Lizzy Mac]

How do you know the fruit and veg you buy in shops has not been grown near roads? I don't. It doesn't say exactly where it's grown.

Also one of the posts in Teuchter link says imo correctly that a lot of fruit and veg is transported on roads in lorries. So is well exposed to road pollution.

I don't know where the fruit and veg that I buy is grown and I don't trust the food industry at all.
However choosing not to pick fruit grown on a busy road or not buying fruit that's been displayed outside are some of the only thing that are within my power to do. So I do them. Like choosing not to shop with Amazon, for example.
I don't think a handful of one line sentences or opinions on a money saving forum proves a whole lot.

 

[Angellic]

I don't know where the fruit and veg that I buy is grown and I don't trust the food industry at all.
However choosing not to pick fruit grown on a busy road or not buying fruit that's been displayed outside are some of the only thing that are within my power to do. So I do them. Like choosing not to shop with Amazon, for example.
I don't think a handful of one line sentences or opinions on a money saving forum proves a whole lot.

Still, there should be some lovely blossom in spring and hopefully a lot more birds and wildlife.

 

[bimble]

I was at the LJ Neighborhood Planning forum tonight and someone brought this up as they had seen this on Urban ( not me. A lot of people look at urban).

The answer was the idea is to stop drinkers and people lurking about the new entrance to Wyck gardens.

So you are correct and this was intentional part of the design.

I did object to this and the lack of seating.

All this money spent on improvements and no seating. What's the point? If people are going to be discouraged from "lurking" around a park what's the point of all these works? Surely a park is somewhere one should be able to sit in?

bimble

Did the meeting make it clear whose decision it was to design the public space with inbuilt people-repellants?

Is it too late to change it do you think?
They are still working on it and maybe a few extra bricks could level up the walls to make flat tops?
teuchter you know about bricks, is that feasible?

 

[goldengraham]

Anyone know what's going on with the Higgs Estate development?

 

[Lizzy Mac]

Still, there should be some lovely blossom in spring and hopefully a lot more birds and wildlife.

And fruit to eat.
My point was that hopefully the fruit will get eaten whereas, say the apples down Milkwood Road don’t get eaten as it’s a busy rat run and falls onto dirty pavement.

 

[teuchter]

Did the meeting make it clear whose decision it was to design the public space with inbuilt people-repellants?

Is it too late to change it do you think?
They are still working on it and maybe a few extra bricks could level up the walls to make flat tops?
teuchter you know about bricks, is that feasible?

I'll have to have a look at it next time I go past.

 

[Pickman's model]

I'll have to have a look at it next time I go past.

you do that

 

[teuchter]

By the way I had it in my head that part of the point of those low walls was so that people could sit on them. I went back through the thread, and here's an extract from a photo Gramsci posted of the information board about the project.

 

[hungry_squirrel]

Anyone know what's going on with the Higgs Estate development?

I've been wondering the same - just feels like it's being left to rot, which is a big shame.

 

[teuchter]

I've been wondering the same - just feels like it's being left to rot, which is a big shame.

Last I heard there was supposed to be a new planning application. But nothing so far.

 

[bimble]

I don't even know anymore who is most likely to be 'in charge' of this public space development.
Can anyone advise who I'd best send my cross email to about the planned seats that have now been turned into anti-seats?

 

[Gramsci]

 

[Gramsci]

Anyone know what's going on with the Higgs Estate development?

That came up at the LJ Neighborhood Planning Forum.

Family Mosiac have been trying to persuade the church (Sureways) to relocate so they can do design that opens up that corner. The church are refusing any offer from Family to relocate in new build in the development. So it's back to the drawing board.

From what Anthea of LJAG was saying Family Mosiac idea of offering to relocate the church was a good one.

I agree. Whatever the virtues of the church it's just a blank wall to me on the outside. Pretty ugly.

 

[Gramsci]

I don't even know anymore who is most likely to be 'in charge' of this public space development.
Can anyone advise who I'd best send my cross email to about the planned seats that have now been turned into anti-seats?

It's complicated.

I go to the LJ Neighborhood Planning Forum meetings.

After the road closure debacle the Council set up a new "Steering Group" to decide on public realm improvements. These designs don't come under the LJ Neighborhood Planning Forum. One might ask why.

The Steering Group is dominated by the petrol heads who opposed the road closures. They see LJ as somewhere to pass through not somewhere to sit around in or enjoy. This is all "middle class". So seating isn't something they would support. I must add this is my personal impression of what's been happening.

LJAG rep at planning forum said the reason the walls are designed to discourage seating is because the parks department of Council dont want people hanging around parks or open spaces as they create litter. I kid you not. Parks department of Council want an easy life. Parks with no people.

The "steering group" on public realm "improvements" meet before the LJ Neighborhood Planning Forum. So there is a bit of overlap.

Your point on who to email. I m going to have to ask at next meeting.

The planning forum doesn't have much say. I was told that there would be no wider consultation as the Council had decided that the LJ Road Madness dominated steering group would have the final say.

As an example of LJ Road Madness attitude at the Planning Forum was when we discussed the possibility of big increase in population of LJ if developers schemes came on line. Ie pressure on transport etc.

All one of the opposers of the road closures was concerned about is that developers aren't allowed by Lambeth council planning department to build car parking spaces in new developments. As people needed cars. So planning guidelines for car free development should be removed. So all that stuff about finding different ways to reduce car use from LJ Road Madness was total bollox.

 

[Gramsci]

I don't even know anymore who is most likely to be 'in charge' of this public space development.
Can anyone advise who I'd best send my cross email to about the planned seats that have now been turned into anti-seats?

I will try to bring it up at next Planning Forum if posters want me to.

There is enough space to put seating in imo at a later date. I've had a look and that is how it seems to me.

 

[teuchter]

I will try to bring it up at next Planning Forum if posters want me to.

I'd like you to.

 

[teuchter]

The Steering Group is dominated by the petrol heads who opposed the road closures.

Does this "steering group" get re-formed each year or anything? Who decides who's in it?

 

[Gramsci]

Does this "steering group" get re-formed each year or anything? Who decides who's in it?

It's a one off group for the spending of the TFL funding for the public realm improvements. It came after the road closure failure. The Council decided to set up the group after that to relook at the public realm improvements. Council decided who was on it.

Before there had been some public consultation. The Council when it set up the steering group said that it would have last say on consultation. Time was pressing and the money needed to be spent. So no more public consultation.

Steering group included LJAG, LJ Road Madness, LEMB , Lambeth Cycling group and some of the car mechanic business in arches.

I wasn't against it to start with. LJAG still don't understand why they rub up sections of the community like Council tenants the wrong way.

But the way the Steering Group has worked imo opinion , which is provisional, is that the victors in the road closure have been trying to water down any public realm improvements that are for the public.

Hence a new entrance to the park that is pretty unfriendly now. I don't think that could have been the original intention.

 

[xsunnysuex]

I grabbed a shot of the "bum unfriendly" wall as I went past. But noticed a flat wall I never saw before. Was it always meant to be like this? Or have they changed it because of people complaining?

 

[Gramsci]

I grabbed a shot of the "bum unfriendly" wall as I went past. But noticed a flat wall I never saw before. Was it always meant to be like this? Or have they changed it because of people complaining?

View attachment 126663 View attachment 126664

When I looked that wall on right hand side is low. It was meant to be like this. I reckon the designers think people won't sit on such low wall.

What is annoying is if one goes past the new entrance there are old flower beds outside the flats. With flat walls.

 

[Gramsci]

Today at the community planting

 

[Gramsci]

 

[Gramsci]

Apart from the Farm the two groups involved in the planting are these:

Open Orchard Project


Urban Growth London - Creating thriving green communities in London

 

[Beasley]

This morning I found the entrance to Wick Gardens reopened so took a chance at sitting at various points along the sloping walls. They were more comfortable than I expected.

 

[Mation]

The P5 does pass the Akerman health centre at the moment but only northbound, is that right?

It seems there was a consultation to reroute it southbound to pass there too but did that never happen?

Bus service proposal: route P5 - Transport for London - Citizen Space

I just noticed today that it's now going south via Akerman too. I don't know when it started but must either have been last week or this, and that page you linked to was updated last Monday.

 

[CH1]

I just noticed today that it's now going south via Akerman too. I don't know when it started but must either have been last week or this, and that page you linked to was updated last Monday.

Yippee! Looks like I could change back to my old surgery Iveagh House (now removed to the Akerman PFI £10 million building.

I find the service at Corner Surgery atrocious to put it mildly. Now I could travel to Iveagh PFI Surhery on a zimmer frame (via the P5), maybe time to change back?

If you can get appointments to actually see a doctor personally rather than have a 7 days delay on a phone consultation at a time the Corner surgery doctor chooses on a whim, that would be a plus. Also if the counter staff interpreted prescription requests within 48 hours literally instead of 5 days minimum that would also help.

I liked Iveagh Surgery's Dr Eastaway. He is the only doctor I've consulted who appreciated Private Eye and had an intense interest in the history of Ataxerxes - stimulated by playing the oboe in historically authentic performances of the Handel opera.

Doing a Google the Doctor is a positive polymath!
James Eastaway | Trinity Laban

 

[Gramsci]

This morning I found the entrance to Wick Gardens reopened so took a chance at sitting at various points along the sloping walls. They were more comfortable than I expected.

I don't think they are that comfortable.

I also think seating should have been designed as part of the entrance. It's how it's been done at entrance to Barrier Block on CHL opposite the row of shops. Designed by Edible Bus Stop. I will post up a photo when I have time. It is possible to make an entrance a people friendly environment.

These public realm improvements are funded by TFL. The funding is meant to improve junctions for non car users. Pedestrian and cyclist. Meant to mean junctions are not so dominated by cars. Improve the environment for pedestrians. If the rest of the public realm improvements are like this one then that reason for improvements has been ditched.

This finished new entrance to Wyck gardens seems to me a waste of TFL money. One can of course sit on the walls. But bimble was right it does not look like one is welcome to. And this was design intention.

As the public realm improvements steering group was dominated by car lobby it's hardly surprising no one argued about this.

 

[bimble]

I had a test-sit on the wall yesterday too, was not painful exactly but i was wearing my big coat. Its a real shame imo that they didn't just build them flat, I think it will be obvious to everyone what the intention is with the anti-loitering design and feel its kind of insulting to have constructed our new 'public space' in this way.

 

[teuchter]

Did my own test and agree they aren't exactly comfortable or inviting to sit on.

There's not even any seating provided near the bus stop and that's pretty poor.

Gramsci you are quite right that TfL funding is supposed to improve public realm for pedestrians. I wonder if they have any process for checking that projects they fund satisfy their conditions. TfL have various design manuals for street furniture, landscaping, pavements, bus stops and so on. You'd think that TfL funded projects would be expected to go by the recommendations in those. I would think that it would be possible to go through those and find specific recommendations relating to things like seating provision. If you thought there was any mileage in doing that, perhaps to mention at one of the neighbourhood meetings, or to put to TfL then I could have a look. It's probably a bit of a lost cause though.

By the way I'm not all that convinced by the design of the walls in general. Unless there is some kind of reinforcement that's not visible, I reckon the little granite setts that have been used for the top surface are going to get bashed off quite easily. Especially the ones on corners/ends.

On a more positive note I think the overall layout is better than it was before and it's good to see that some trees have been planted too.

 

[xsunnysuex]

There's not even any seating provided near the bus stop and that's pretty poor.

Yes I thought that was bad when I went through there this morning. You can't really perch on that wall near the stop either. The stop is a request. So if you park yourself there, the bus will sail past if your not lucky.
I must have just avoided being in your pic teuchter. That chap was waiting at the bus stop when I went through.