Brent Cross Shopping Centre: "Hugo Boss - Sale"

"We are pleased to invite you and a friend to our exclusive Sale Preview."

Monday 8th June 2015 – Friday 12th June 2015

"Please bring this personal invitation with you to receive the special discount of 25% on Spring and selected Summer lines." [Er, that's it. So good luck with that.]

Terms & Conditions

"Discount available at selected BOSS stand-alone stores in the UK and Ireland, on Spring and selected Summer 2015 lines, excluding basics, eyewear, helmets, fragrances, mobile accessories, watches. Exchange only on items bought with discount.

"Offer Ends On 12th June 2015."

---

"The German fashion house succumbed to
mounting pressure from unions, pension funds, politicians
and Hollywood celebrities, canceling its controversial plans
to shut down an Ohio suit factory"

Hugo Boss plant will stay open with new owners,
saving 160+ jobs

The Economist: "How renewable energy can become competitive"

Link to web site

"On 2 June, a group of scientists and economists announced plans for the launch of what they call the Global Apollo Programme in the hope of making new solar capacity cheaper than new coal-burning power plants by 2025. Countries which sign up to the project will promise to spend 0.02% of GDP on research into renewables, for a initial $15 billion in public spending. (Publicly funded research is currently $6 billion world-wide.)

"By comparison, the authors argue, the original Apollo moon programme cost a total of $150 billion in today’s money. Saving the planet, they argue, requires similar effort. But can renewable energy really make much of a difference?

"... Yet opponents of renewables say the level of subsidies involved shows that wind and solar investments are just boondoggles, salving the conscience of the green-minded and cossetting politically connected companies. That is true up to a point—governments have probably spent too much money on first-generation technology which is inefficient and expensive compared with what is now becoming available. But all energy is subsidised one way or another; users of fossil fuels don’t pay for the damage they do to the planet. Subsidies to renewable energy are around $100 billion a year."

FMag: "Hammerson unveils new identity"

"The developer is unveiling its new brand identity, a logo marking the culmination of its decision taken in 2012 to refocus its business on commercial real estate. [Which is presumably why it contributes a net reduction in housing stock in Barnet, before it clears off.]

"In place of its previous brand identity, which was adopted in 2006, Hammerson has now substituted two white squares forming an invisible 'H'. The image 'is underpinned by its vision of creating leading retail destinations, where more happens for consumers, and retailers alike,' according to the company.

"Hammerson manages a network composed of 22 shopping centers and 22 retail parks, not to mention investments in 15 European outlets. The total represents 2.2 million sq ft of commercial property valued at around 10.4 billion euros (7.7 billion pounds). Its flagship project in France, the Terrasses du Port in Marseille, attracted 12 million visitors in its first year."

---

Hammerson's Brent Cross restaurant (bless)

PERC: "New ebook: Forging Economic Discovery in 21st Century Britain"

"As part of PERC’s efforts to develop a new platform to advance the contemporary study of political economy, we present our first eBook.

"Drawing on a wide range of academic and non-academic experts, this collection of essays explores the changes that need to happen in our understanding and analysis of the UK economy. Authors speak to the groundswell of interest in wrestling 'the economy' away from elite policy circles and developing a new collaborative research agenda where the economy is a human, rather than abstract, endeavour."

The Guardian: "A more radical approach to debt: do nothing"

"IMF economists explore radical approach for states with large public debts – if the cure is worse than the disease, why not just live with the debt?"

Link to web site

"One of the most obvious legacies of the global financial crisis is the sharp increase in public debt. Countries scrambling to avert the collapse of their economies or banking systems built up stocks of debt at a pace previously unseen during peacetime.

"Attention has more recently turned to how quickly that debt should be paid down. In the UK, Chancellor George Osborne has made cutting the national debt as a share of GDP a key pledge.

"But now economists at the International Monetary Fund have explored the potential merits of a more radical approach to all this debt: doing nothing at all. In other words, 'just live with it', they propose."

Thu 4 June: Legatum Institute: "London Needs to Build the Right Housing—Not Just More Housing"

"The Legatum Institute and Create Streets will host a livestreamed panel with Evan Davis, housing experts and some of London's prospective mayoral candidates, as they discuss how to solve the capital's housing crisis and boost well-being by building homes people want to live in"

"In some ways the solution to the housing crisis is easy: build more, lots more. But, this has never been politically easy—hence the plethora of programmes to boost demand not supply.

"So the debate moves on to: how do we build homes that people love so that unlocking that supply becomes politically easier? Do we need to regulate what we build based on people’s preferences, with less focus on how we build it? And is there a way to solve London’s housing crisis without the controversy that we are currently creating?

Welcome

• Cristina Odone, Director of Communications, Legatum Institute

Introductory Remarks and Presentation

• Nicholas Boys Smith, Director, Create Streets; Legatum Fellow

Speaker

• Evan Davis, Presenter, BBC Newsnight

Panellists

• David Lammy, MP for Tottenham; London Mayoral Candidate
• Ivan Massow, financial services entrepreneur; London Mayoral Candidate
• Yolande Barnes, Director, World Research, Savills
• Toby Lloyd, Head of Policy, Shelter UK

Details

• Thursday, 4 June, 2015, 18:00 for 18:15 start, followed by a drinks reception
• Legatum Institute, 11 Charles Street, London, W1J 5DW

RSVP

• This event is now full, however, the discussion will be livestreamed. Details below. For enquiries, please contact Emily Callaghan.

Livestream

• The discussion will be livestreamed here at 18:15 BST on Thursday, 4 June 2015.
• Follow on Twitter #Homes4London @LegatumInst @CreateStreets

Hammerson and Barnet grab Cricklewood's Clitterhouse Farm

From Clitterhouse Farm Project:

"During the public planning consultation held in the summer of 2013 we rallied together and with your help - 'saving the farm for community use' - was raised as the second highest priority area for the community. At the planning committee 30th January 2014 councillors and the developers recognised the buildings as a potential valuable community resource. In October 2014 in a meeting with Hammerson and Barnet we were informed that the buildings were to be retained. Since then we have had numerous meetings and negotiations with the council and Hammerson where we have made it clear that it is our intention to restore the entire site for community use.

"The latest amendments to Barnet's reserved matters application - which includes the farm - show that they want to take buildings and external courtyard space for a park maintenance depot (see image).

"If you would like to download the relevant documents, click this link:
http://clitterhouse.com/wp-content-cfp/uploads/BXC_CFP_Amended_Planning_Documents.zip
It will automatically download a ZIP file of three PDF files. Search for the word ‘farm’ in the PDF to find the relevant sections.

"Clitterhouse Farm Project will be strongly objecting to these plans on just some of the following grounds (below).

• A maintenance depot with heavy machinery is not ‘community use’. Our community has lost several valuable assets already such as Hendon Football club and the green triangles on nearby Brent Terrace and potentially the green space outside B&Q on Cricklewood Lane. We cannot afford to lose another space to this development. We need these spaces to meet and interact and form the backbone of a strong and cohesive community


• This proposal damages the financial viability of our community project by severely reducing the usable space within the site and may jeopardise our prospects of accessing funding the refurbishment of the buildings. Clitterhouse Farm Project has built financial projections - based on information in previous planning applications that stated that the parks team would need 2,800 sq feet of the farm site. This amendment represents a significant increase in that area by 1,200 sq feet and undermines the financial sustainability of an important community enterprise


• Removing such a large section of the courtyard damages the unique architectural quality of the Victorian farmyard. We value the heritage of the building and feel that design layout undermines them


• There is an inappropriate and incompatible use of space. A large depot such as this will represent a health and safety risk. The size and scale of the depot is unacceptable given its proximity to our proposed community facilities, Claremont primary school, the entrance to the playing fields and the nearby residential buildings


• The consultation process has been very poor. Local residents and community groups have been given too little time to respond to the lengthy and detailed plans. In this instance we have had seven days to respond by the time we were informed of the latest consultation and the impending deadline on the 5th June


• The detailed design plans of the farm should be treated as a separate planning application so that the community can be engaged in a genuine consultation process.

"Please take five minutes to respond and have your say. Feel free to expand if you feel we have missed any important points. Your voice is important. If you have an opinion on this issue, you need to speak up. Do not copy and paste this text as your comments will be ignored.

"Email your objections directly to Thomas Wyld: thomas.wyld@barnet.gov.uk using reference 15/00769/RMA, and copy to planning.consultation@barnet.gov.uk."

"Hammerson rebrands and relocates" (still an arrogant sow's ear, though)

Brent Cross, London

Brent Cross is a UK retail success story. Located in one of the UK’s most affluent catchments, it has a loyal and partisan customer base which thrives on having access to the best of both UK and international brands.

"Located at the junction of the M1 motorway and the London North Circular, it is [a car-based site] well positioned to serve the 2m people within its core catchment area [by car] who spend approximately £9.9 billion on non-grocery items. The area is identified as a key national growth zone [No, it's not. You surely don't mean the Budget mention by George Osborne, do you?], and the site has planning consent for additional retail and leisure space of 600,000 sq ft, to be delivered in a transformational development over the next five years.

"Brent Cross has one of the largest retail catchments in the UK, and is the largest asset by value in the Hammerson portfolio."

01.06.2015

"To mark the final part of its shift in becoming a purely retail-focussed property specialist, Hammerson has today launched a new brand proposition to accompany the move of its UK headquarters into new premises at Kings Place in King’s Cross.

"Hammerson’s new brand identity is the visual manifestation of its continued focus on a strategic brand proposition which fits the Company’s strategic approach and is underpinned by its vision of creating leading retail destinations, where more happens for consumers and retailers alike.

"The new branding strategy provides a clear proposition and brand framework that builds in consistency across the Company’s activities at a corporate and asset level. As appropriate, Hammerson’s new look and feel will be implemented across the Company’s portfolio of shopping centres and retail parks within Europe.

"The new brand is adaptable, providing flexibility to be used across consumer or commercial stakeholder audiences and importantly, allows individual assets to benefit from a visible corporate brand whilst retaining their iconic identities.

"Hammerson’s reinvigorated brand will be showcased at its new headquarters in Kings Place, King’s Cross. The new 24,000 sq ft office on the sixth floor of Kings Place, will see Hammerson become part of a vibrant central London hub, which has rapidly become a sought after spot for a range of international businesses, including fashion retailers and media companies.

"The new office, which is targeting a SKA Gold rating, will provide staff with a contemporary, modern and agile working environment that reflects Hammerson’s retail focus.

"David Atkins, CEO of Hammerson said:

"Over the last three years we have realigned our strategy to become the largest retail-focused property company in the UK, redefining the core of our business. Combined with our move to Kings Place, this year was the opportune time to reappraise the way we present Hammerson – both externally and internally – and to implement a new brand identity that embodies our retail DNA.

“Integral to our brand proposition is our focus on creating a consistent and engaging experience for customers and retailers across our portfolio, whilst maintaining the iconic status of our individual assets. This rebranding exercise marks the final strategic phase in our journey to become retail specialists and clearly defines what Hammerson stands for amongst our stakeholders."

Daily Telegraph: "Renting your way to poverty: welcome to the future of housing"

"The housing crisis is already out of control, and no one in politics wants to help"

Link to web site

"... Prices have risen because the government has been trying to get them to rise. At the end of 2014 the campaigning organisation Priced Out calculated that the government-sponsored Help to Buy programme had helped raise average prices by £46,000 in 18 months – or 27 per cent – resulting in an additional 258,000 renters being priced-out of buying a home as compared to the 31,000 buyers helped by the scheme. Some 3.5 million people who would have normally been able to buy a home are now trapped in private renting.

"In the autumn of 2014 there was little sign of a slowdown in the UK housing market. There were plenty of warnings of a slowdown, but very little evidence of prices falling. By September prices fell slightly in most regions, but they usually do in that month. In London prices had risen by a remarkable 18.4 per cent in just one year. That annual percentage increase had itself been rising all year; but no one can tell you what it will be in a few months from now. It could crash; it could grow even higher; it is unlikely to remain the same. As prices began to fall in central London in February and March of 2015 the latest budget is designed to try to hold them up through to 7 May.

"On 23 October 2014, shares in the London-based estate agents, Foxtons, fell by 20 per cent in just a matter of hours. They fell because Foxtons said that they did not expect to make as much money next year as they had in 2014. Many investors wondered whether this might be signalling the start of a wider property crash. Foxton's fortunes have suffered again very recently and again there is chattering among the informed. Annual price rises of 21 per cent were reported in London last year. Four years of such housing inflation and prices would more than double. Everyone in the business knows it has to come to an end, they just don’t know when."

Governing.com: "How Well Can a City Predict Its Future 20 Years Out?"

"In 1994, Seattle won praise from urbanist thinkers nationwide with its 20-year plan for population and economic growth"

Link to web site

"Twenty years ago, Seattle was America’s epicenter of urban planning. Its mayor, Norm Rice, had sponsored and guided into law a long-range blueprint that laid out in copious detail what the city was projected to look like in the faraway year of 2014.

"According to Seattle's Comprehensive Plan, as the document was officially known, the city would emerge from a period of slow growth and increase its population significantly in the ensuing two decades. It would use its planning tools to direct the new growth into 39 'urban villages' scattered across the city. These communities would gradually evolve into urbanist showplaces: compact enclaves organized around walkable streets, neighborhood commerce, reliable public transportation and abundant green space. Elements of the plan seemed to come straight out of the writings of Jane Jacobs, the author of the influential 1961 book The Death and Life of Great American Cities.

"... In 2013, newly elected Mayor Ed Murray did something mayors typically forget to do. He asked what the consequences of the once-famous urban plan had been. And he hired Peter Steinbrueck, a longtime city council member who had opened up a private urban consulting firm, to launch a study to find out. Steinbrueck’s team spent a year on what it called the Seattle Sustainable Neighborhoods Assessment Project, studying 10 of the urban villages in minute detail and gathering more general information about the city itself. Earlier this year, it produced a 170-page report."

Ham and High letter about Brent Terrace (the first full planning application related to Barnet's corrupt 2010 outline planning consent)

Financial Times: "Why finance is too much of a good thing"

"Is it possible to have too much finance? Harmed by the aftermath of financial crises, enraged by bailouts of financial institutions, irritated by the generous remuneration, aghast at repeated malfeasance and infuriated by the impunity of those responsible, most ordinary people would find it all too easy to answer: yes."

Link to web site (paywall)

"... An organised society offers two ways of becoming rich. The normal way has been to exercise monopoly power. Historically, monopoly control over land, usually seized by force, has been the main route to wealth. A competitive market economy offers a socially more desirable alternative: invention and production of goods and services.

"Alas, it is also possible to extract rents in markets. The financial sector with its complexity and implicit subsidies is in an excellent position to do so. But such practices do not only shift money from a large number of poorer people to a smaller number of richer ones. It may also gravely damage the economy.

"This is the argument of Luigi Zingales of Chicago Booth School, a strong believer in free markets, in his presidential address to the American Finance Association. The harms take two forms. The first is direct damage: an unsustainable credit-fuelled boom, say. Another is indirect damage that results from a breakdown in trust in a financial arrangements, due to crises, pervasive 'duping', or both.

[Reposted from 2011] Localis

"Localis commitment to decentralisation crosses party boundaries"

Prof George Jones, LSE

"Localis is now firmly in the think tank Premiership"

Paul Carter Leader, Kent CC

"I would recommend any organisation with an interest in localism to join Localis"

Emma Cariaga, Development Director, Land Securities

"Localis consistently offers fresh insight for councils to maximise the opportunities given to them"

Richard Kemp, Liverpool CC

"Localis has an excellent reputation for pushing the boundaries of localism"

Rt. Hon. Oliver Letwin MP, Minister for Policy

"Localis are out in front, pioneering the policies that will change our nation for the better"

Rt. Hon. Greg Clark MP, Minister, DCLG

"Localis is a driving force for change within the localist agenda"

Rt. Hon. Eric Pickles MP, Secretary of State, DCLG

"Regeneration in a time of Austerity"

Discussion note from Localis workshops with Cheshire West & Chester Council on 24 March 2011, and the Barnet London Borough Council on 11 November 2011

"The Government’s simultaneous public spending cuts and emphasis on local autonomy, particularly with regards to financial capabilities, have created a new paradigm for regeneration. There has been a significant level of policy change since the last election, including wholesale reform of the planning system and upcoming changes to local government finance, putting the emphasis firmly on growth."

 

"... Despite some deprivation in the south of the Borough, Barnet is relatively affluent, with positive growth prospects. The Borough plans to build 7,000 new homes by 2016, and is currently refreshing current growth agenda documents to further specify their developmental framework.

"One of the on-going regeneration projects is the Brent Cross shopping centre, which it is projected to start in 2012. The development will provide approximately 20,000 new jobs, as well as several thousand new homes.

"Aiming to stimulate more transit-oriented development, there will be a new northern line station at Brent Cross. This will also hopefully reduce the amount of car use in the Borough, an important factor in successful regeneration efforts, as low car use levels have the ability to foster foot traffic and vibrant city centres. It will also help to solve the lack of available parking within the shopping centre.

"The A5 corridor is another possible location for transit-oriented development as proximity to the motorway provides the potential for increased access to once remote areas."

... ...

"... In Barnet, the panel highlighted the opportunity of converting publicly owned assets into capital funding.

"In a recent report on financing infrastructure, Localis has argued that mechanisms such as local asset backed vehicles (LABVs) are a feasible mechanism for sharing risk and reward with the private sector, and incentivising investment."

"... In Barnet, the panel commented that whilst the recent abolition of RSSs (Regional Spatial Strategies) allows greater freedom when planning regeneration projects, the assessment stages that have replaced the RSSs are still restrictive.

"The panel in Barnet also noted that whilst allowing TIF (Tax Increment Funding) for local regeneration from April 2012 is a positive step, tight Treasury controls such as caps on borrowing and final Treasury sign-offs could make attaining adequate funding difficult."

"...In Barnet, the panel noted that whilst the recent abolition of RSSs allows greater flexibility when planning regeneration, care must be taken to avoid causing tension in communities. regarding neighbourhood and housing planning, which would put a strain on growth."

Tue 9 - Sun 14 June: Reclaim London: 'Ubiquitous Unique'

"London is being stolen from us. Public spaces are privatised, green spaces built on, our heritage trashed. Luxury apartments are stacked high and left vacant while housing is now unaffordable for most Londoners. Council estates are being demolished, displacing people and breaking up communities. Local identity is being lost.

"For the fortunate few, London is booming. Warped by financial interests, the planning system guarantees property developers huge profits but fails to deliver the buildings and services we need. Too many of our elected representatives surrender to developers rather than defend their electorate. Behind closed doors they collude in the sale of our land, the destruction of our communities and the ruin of our cultural heritage.

"This can't go on.

"People all over London are doing battle with planners, politicians and developers to defend their neighbourhoods. It is time for us to stand together and demand change – to Reclaim London from the private and powerful interests wrecking our city.

"London's future depends on the wellbeing of all, not just the few. We want to live in a civilised city where people and communities come first. We demand a fair, open, accountable and genuinely democratic planning process – a process that protects the things we love and puts public need before private greed."

---

Ubiquitous Unique
09 June - 14 June
Free entry: Open 10am - 6pm
Organised by: Reclaim London
Red Gallery
1-3 Rivington Street
EC2A 3DT

The installation Ubiquitous Unique will feature computer-rendered elevations from one hundred recent planning applications across London which, seen collectively, will challenge claims for the uniqueness of these schemes.

"It will question the extent to which this development model is solving London's growing problems. Are 'new landmarks', 'iconic structures', 'stunning views', 'exclusive apartments', and 'award-winning architects' benign elements or are they part of the housing crisis, the privatisation of public space, the loss of built heritage and the fragmentation of communities?

"The installation will be curated by Reclaim London, a recently-formed group voicing Londoners’ collective concern about the city's growth and seeking accountability and fairness in the planning process. Reclaim London will use the exhibition as a hub for discussion and ideas for change, such as how architects could benefit from a fairer balance of power between developers, the authorities and the public."

Part of the London Festival of Architecture running throughout the month of June. Website HERE.

Barnet Times: Hammerson's Brent Cross Whitefield Estate evictions and the Living Bridge

Brent Cross Shopping Centre: "Pastel Shades: Weekend Wonders"

"The sweetest thing - your guide to the latest pastel shades at Brent Cross.

"This is the perfect time of year to indulge your sartorial sweet tooth. How? By introducing a pinch of pastels to your wardrobe. Pastel pieces have a number of dress-down possibilities.

Try toughening your look with New Look's vanilla ripped jeans, scuffed shoes or trainers and a denim jacket - so 90s!

"Another big tick next to pastels: they make a perfect accompaniment to those neutral basics you already have; peachy pumps transform favourite blue jeans and a structured powder blue satchel from New Look makes a striped sailor top feel fresh all over again. Now, that doesn't sound too tricky does it? [No, indeed it doesn't!]

"PLUS equals more inspiration. Want more stories like this – and exclusive offers? Download the new Brent Cross PLUS app today."

---

"Brent Cross Plus"

"Plus equals more.

"Our free PLUS app for Brent Cross brings you exclusive offers, centre news and more.

"Personalise your interests and make your shopping experience easier, fun and more rewarding."

---

"Static Warden"

Location: Brent Cross, North London
Salary: £230 per week, plus OT and beneifts [sic]
Hours: 35hrs per week (5 days out of 7)

UK Parking Control have more than 25 years` experience in the parking management business and are dedicated to providing clients with reliable and effective parking solutions. We take immense pride in being different and providing our clients with an experience that is professional in its approach, positive in its delivery and rewarding with its results.

Due to continued growth, we are now looking to recruit a permanent (full time) Static Parking Attendant to patrol a busy site in Brent Cross.

Previous experience is advantageous however you can expect to be fully trained to conduct your role and where applicable, provided with branded uniform and any relevant equipment.

Within your role, you will be required to carry out the following duties:

• Issue Parking Charges to drivers of vehicles that contravene the regulations of the car park
• Document all information accurately
• Patrol car parks whilst adhering to Health and Safety policies
• Conduct regular site reports for our clients.

 Ideal candidates will be able to demonstrate the following behaviours:

• Provide excellent customer service when dealing with general enquiries
• Remain calm, professional and polite when dealing with challenging face to face situations
• Good technical experience with electronic devices such as Mobile Phones and PDA`s
• Work under own initiative and be self-motivate [sic]
• Happy to work outdoors and in all weather conditions. 

This is a full time, permanent position working 35 hours per week.

You will work 5 days out of 7 including regular if not fixed weekends, shifts will be between the hours of 6am and 10pm.

What`s in it for me? At UKPC we value the people that work for us, so as an employee you can expect to enjoy the following benefits:

• Weekly Salary (Non-commission)
• Holiday entitlement of 20 days + 8 Bank Holidays
• Pension Scheme
• KPI Scheme
• Excellence Awards
• Ongoing training.

Mr Mustard: "Free film - Monday 1 June 2015"

Conservativehome: "The height of stupidity – why London is the wrong place for skyscrapers"

Link to web site

"As you may have noticed, our low-rise capital is acquiring a growing collection of high-rise buildings.

"As Paul Murrain explains in a thought-provoking essay for Create Streets, this is not a good thing:

"There is nothing that better illustrates the race to the bottom in London's development than the two 50-storey residential glass towers at the southern end of Blackfriars Bridge.

What’s the rationale for that? Why 50 storeys? Where did that come from? Did some planner toss a coin? Perhaps I’m being unfair. If it was a result of careful wind, light and sun calculations to benefit the public space, I'm sure I will be told in no uncertain terms."

BBC: "The decline of the British front garden"

Link to web site

"The Royal Horticultural Society says British front gardens are disappearing. Why are people paving over their lawns?

"When people imagine a classic British front garden, they may first think of a small slice of well-tended grass. Perhaps with a box hedge.

"But over the past 10 years the number of front gardens with gravel or paving instead of grass has tripled, now making up a quarter of all houses, a survey for the RHS shows.

"There's an environmental cost. Paving increases the risk of flash flooding - instead of grass and soil soaking up moisture, it runs straight off paving and overwhelms drainage systems."

Mon 18 May: Barnet Planning Committee: The destruction of Brent Terrace green triangles (oddly not happening in Totteridge or Hampstead Garden Suburb)

(Railway land to the left is private and fenced off)

Land Off Brent Terrace Main Report[1]

Rest of documents are here.

Evening Standard: "Conservatives lost four seats in capital because 'London is turning into Paris', Tory MP claims"

Link to web site

"The Conservatives lost four seats in London because the city is 'turning into Paris' with poorer people being pushed out from the gentrifying centre, a senior Tory MP warned today.

"Gavin Barwell, who won Croydon Central in a cliffhanger battle which gave him a majority of just 165, also raised concerns over the 'craziness' of the housing market, with property prices having spiralled out of the reach of many Londoners.

"He saw four colleagues beaten in the city, Nick de Bois in Enfield North, Lee Scott in Ilford North, Angie Bray in Ealing Central and Acton and Mary Macleod in Brentford and Isleworth."

Business Green: "Motoring costs society six times more than cycling, says study"

"Cost benefit analysis of cars versus bikes by Lund University shows significant benefits of pedal power"

Ride over to the web site

"New cycling infrastructure represents one of the most cost effective investments available for city-planners, according to a new study by Danish and Australian researchers.

"A new paper by Stefan Gössling from Lund University and Andy S. Choi from the University of Queensland, published in the journal Ecological Economics, calculated that it costs six times more for society and individuals to travel by car instead of bicycles.

"It is the first time academics have attempted to put a total cost on car use compared to cycling. The study considers a wide range of environmental and societal impacts of both modes of transport in Copenhagen, a city that is famous for its expansive cycle network."

Mon 11 May: Cricklewood Community Forum meeting - with Hammerson, Argent and LB of Barnet (ten years too late)

2015-05 Carey Hall

Planning Resource: "Election 2015: The Conservatives' key manifesto pledges on planning"

"Changes to the law to give local people the 'final say' on wind farm applications and support for brownfield development will be key policies for the incoming Conservative administration."

Link to web site

"Following last night’s shock election victory for the party it is now set to form the next government.

"... The manifesto ... said that a Conservative government would 'ensure local people have more control over planning and protect the green belt' and would 'support locally-led garden cities and towns in places where communities want them, such as Ebbsfleet and Bicester'.

"It added that 'when new homes are granted planning permission, we will make sure local communities know up-front that necessary infrastructure such as schools and roads will be provided'.

"The manifesto also pledged to protect the green belt. It said that brownfield land would be used 'as much as possible' and local authorities would be required to have 'a register of what is available' and ensure that '90 per cent of brownfield sites have planning permission for housing by 2020'.

"The manifesto also confirmed the creation of a new London Land Commission 'with a mandate to identify and release all surplus brownfield land owned by the public sector' and said that Housing Zones would create 95,000 new homes."

Election 2015: Results just in

Barnet Press: Brent Cross's Whitefield estate: compulsory purchase and demolition

Hammerson Positive Places (just not Brent Cross Shopping Centre, of course)

"Our CEO, David Atkins, and Head of Sustainability Louise Ellison, explain the ambitions for Positive Places, the responsbility [sic] that comes with increased development activity, and how Hammerson uses its unique position to increase awareness of sustainability among its key stakeholders."

Our Chief Executive's Vision

"As an ambitious property company we are prepared to push the boundaries around sustainability [though not regarding Barnet's estimate of 29,000 extra cars around Brent Cross shopping centre, of course]: this means not only aiming to set industry precedents with regards to those impacts that are tightly regulated, but also exploring our potential to drive change in other ways."

David Atkins

Link to the flannel

"Hammerson was one of the first major property developers to address sustainability considerations seriously and systematically. Our developments from 2003 onwards saw a series of innovations, ranging from local employment programmes to natural ventilation.

"With our development activity again increasing, we are focusing on designing and delivering buildings that will operate efficiently over the next 50 years or more. This means ensuring that environmental and social sustainability are designed into a scheme alongside economic sustainability, from the outset. [That rules out Brent Cross future plans then.] It also means reflecting on the many social, environmental and technological changes that will take place over that period.

"Quite a challenge when you think that when we originally developed Brent Cross shopping centre in 1976 it was the first out of town retail centre in the UK and we only had three television channels!"

Future route to
Brent Cross shopping centre

Meade Magazine: "Ariella Couture opens in Brent Cross Shopping Center" [sic]

"Earlier this week, we were invited to the opening of the new Ariella Couture store in Brent Cross shopping center [sic] in North London. Opposite Kurt Geiger store on the second floor of the shopping center [sic] Ariella Couture has found a new home to show and sell it's [sic] beautiful day and evening gowns. Color co-ordinated gowns, from creams and whites to blues, reds and blacks all have a either [sic] made out of the softest chiffon, lace, silk and embellished or draped creating the classic haute couture look.

"The Ariella label loved by many British and International celebrities has been on the British fashion market since 1966, and it established it's [sic] name as a leading fashion house for cocktail, evening and occasion wear, offering an exclusive and original styles [sic] for every women out there. With 11 outlets in London including two store on Oxford Circus, Duke Street and Carnaby Street. [sic]"

London Guided Busway

Link to web site

"The proposal is for a new busway using kerb guidance just like the busways in Cambridgeshire and connecting Luton and Dunstable to provide a fast and congestion-free route for buses and coaches from the M1 motorway and the North Circular Road near Staples Corner to Central London at Marylebone Station. You can download the route map from the downloads section on this page.

"The proposition is to use the land next to the railway between Marylebone Station and Finchley Road and alongside the Midland Main Line (MML) between West Hampstead and Brent Cross to construct a two-way kerb guided busway.

"There will be connections to the local road network at Marylebone to enable buses and coaches to continue their journeys to the West End and the City. One possible addition to the proposed scheme is the creation of a new coach terminal over the railway at or near Marylebone Station."

The Guardian: "How Amsterdam became the bicycle capital of the world"

"In the 1960s, Dutch cities were increasingly in thrall to motorists, with the car seen as the transport of the future. It took the intolerable toll of child traffic deaths – and fierce activism – to turn Amsterdam into the cycling nirvana of today"

Link to web site

"Anyone who has ever tried to make their way through the centre of Amsterdam in a car knows it: the city is owned by cyclists. They hurry in swarms through the streets, unbothered by traffic rules, taking precedence whenever they want, rendering motorists powerless by their sheer numbers.

"Cyclists rule in Amsterdam and great pains have been taken to accommodate them: the city is equipped with an elaborate network of cycle-paths and lanes, so safe and comfortable that even toddlers and elderly people use bikes as the easiest mode of transport. It’s not only Amsterdam which boasts a network of cycle-paths, of course; you’ll find them in all Dutch cities.

"The Dutch take this for granted; they even tend to believe these cycle-paths have existed since the beginning of time. But that is certainly not the case. There was a time, in the 1950s and 60s, when cyclists were under severe threat of being expelled from Dutch cities by the growing number of cars. Only thanks to fierce activism and a number of decisive events would Amsterdam succeed in becoming what it is, unquestionably, now: the bicycle capital of the world."