Putney Society President Steps Down Over Allbrook House Listing Support
Says group should be more positive over Roehampton Regeneration
Allbrook House. Picture: Google Street View
John Ewing, the President of the Putney Society, has stepped down in protest over the group’s support for the listing of two buildings in Roehampton. He said in an email distributed to local Councillors that he believed the Society should be more positive in its promotion of the Roehampton Regeneration program.
The Society’s Executive Committee voted to support the listing application for Allbrook House and Roehampton Library last year. Had the listing succeeded it could have compromised plans for the redevelopment of the surrounding area.
The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, John Whittingdale MP, announced the buildings would not be listed in November. The Council and local MP Justine Greening were opposed to the listing application which was rejected by Historic England.
Allbrook House and the library are on a site on which a development of new homes and community amenities are planned. The scheme includes a new library and a village green. The Alton Area Masterplan to regenerate the area was dependent on this site being available and would have needed to be scrapped should the listing have been approved. The plan had cross-party approval on the Borough Council.
New-look Danbury Centre from the Alton Area Masterplan
Mr Ewing lived in the Roehampton area for 26 years from the age of ten. At the time of the Society’s support for the listing he wrote to Historic England endorsing the opposition to the proposal of the Vicar of Roehampton, the Reverend James McKinney.
The Roehampton Supplementary Planning Document (SPD), which was voted through by all political parties, provides strong guidance for residents, stakeholders and developers on the level and type of development the council wants to see in this part of the borough.
It sets out eight ‘core principles’ to guide regeneration, including building high quality housing, improving infrastructure, delivering a high quality landscape and improving access and connections. It also includes planning guidance for four ‘sub-areas’ to help shape the development of these spaces in more detail.
New look Portswood Place from the Alton Area Masterplan
In his letter to Historic England he said, “The building is unattractive and long past its useful life. It is not ‘iconic’! It does not display any harmony with its surroundings and is architecturally inferior to the Corbusier style blocks on Clarence Lane which were listed several years ago. If there is logic to listing it now, where was that logic when the Clarence Lane buildings themselves were listed.”
Mr Ewing added, “The decision has been made by the Council to proceed. The result will be a significantly improved residential environment with more homes. There will be enhanced shopping opportunities. A modern library will be created with a number of advanced facilities.
“The regeneration of Roehampton should not be held up by a desire to list a building which emphasises the split between west and east parts of Roehampton, split by Roehampton Lane’s 4 lane highway. “
January 26, 2016