Tag: Conservation area

Minutes of the Tower Gardens Residents Group – 10 June

Minutes

Cllr Ahmed Mahbub from Haringey attended the meeting.

100 Tower Gardens Road
As you may be aware we have recently been told that this building can potentially be used as a community centre.
Cllr Mahbub explained that he has recently learned the building is in a bad state of disrepair, so it will be a long time before it’s in a condition appropriate for use by the community.
It may therefore be sensible in parallel to look for other buildings that could potentially be used for the centre.
Next steps: Cllr Mahbub will provide a timeline for Haringay’s mapping exercise which will consider all the council’s buildings and whether they can be better utilised. Cllr Mahbub will also arrange a time for people to visit 100 Tower Gardens Road.

Estate maintenance
The issue of people ignoring conservation area requirements when renovating was discussed. It was noted that Haringey does not take enforcement action against those who breach requirements, and that ultimately if those rules continue to be breached the estate will lose its unique character (and possibly its status as a conservation area).
Cllr Mahmud said that he could arrange for Haringey’s estate manager for Tower Gardens to attend a future TGRG meeting.
Hedge maintenance was discussed. Attendees thought it would be a good idea for the council to provide free green waste collections twice a year so that people can trim their hedges and dispose of the waste without having to pay for a green bin.
It was noted that there should be more notice boards around the estate so that local events and groups could be advertised and communicated to residents quickly. There should also be a digital noticeboard, which could serve as a source of information for new residents keen to learn about local networks, events and history.
Next steps: Cllr Mahbub to arrange meeting with TG estate manager, and TGRG to let councillors know where noticeboards should be erected.
Antisocial behaviour
Attendees observed that lime bikes are often left in the middle of pavements which can cause particular issues for people with disabilities, or people on mobility scooters or pushing prams.
It was noted that a resident had their tires slashed. Cllr Mahbub mentioned that there will be a meeting between the Met Police and White Hart Lane residents shortly at which these issues can be raised.
Next steps: Cllr Mahbub to provide details of meeting between WHL and Met Police.

Minutes of Tower Gardens Residents Group meeting: 14th January 2020

Minutes

TGRG 14th January 2020

Larkspur Close Meeting Room

Attending: Mary (Chair), Friedrich (Vice chair) Matthew (Sec), Tania, Thea, Chiara, Cllr Adje, Cat, Christiane, Stuart, George, Petros, Manos, Ava, Fiona, Claudia, PC Louis Pope

Apologies Cllr Stennett and Cllr Bull, Pauline Syddell

Police Update

Recent statistics were circulated by PC Pope. He showed that the TG area is not higher than other Tottenham areas. The highest Tottenham areas for crime are those near the High Road. Tottenham is overall worse for crime stats than the west of Haringey.

Drug use continues in and near Tower Gardens Park.

30 December an explosion occurred in the park due to substances being ignited.

Always report crime via phone, email or website so that statistics can be properly gathered and crime levels reported, so that we can get appropriate resources.

Leave lights on and keep hedges trimmed to reduce risk of burglaries. 

Cllr Adje

Boundary Commission – Ward boundaries in Haringey will be changing and this will affect us for the first time in the 2022 elections.

Consultation on the Council’s budget is open (until 19th Jan).

555 White Hart Lane – Council is working with the company Segro PLC to ensure high quality new commercial development

White Hart Lane/Spurs – the Council is in dispute with Spurs regarding High Road West scheme and creation of pedestrian boulevard from WHL station to the stadium

There was a long discussion about parking and about off street parking. Matthew to forward details about some unauthorised crossovers/front garden parking. Major concerns about all the events at THFC and not having enough visitor parking permits. We are still awaiting decision re future CPZ.

Please follow @haringeycouncil on Twitter – a very good way to find out what is going on locally. Also Nextdoor is a good local forum.

There have been amendments to the Conservation Area rules – all households should have received information through the post. These don’t come into effect until year end.

Other issues

Friends of Tower Gardens Park – are there any volunteers who would like to help with this? Please contact Matthew or Karen. In the past year we have made a big difference. BIG thanks to Zoe Fudge for organisation and wishing her well in the future.

Tree planting – more trees are coming we hope – info forwarded separately.

There is severe flooding at the junction of the Roundway and Waltheof Gardens.

Speeding on the Roundway – this is a disgrace and all residents are fed up with it. People live in fear of crossing the road and also the junction at Lordship Lane. New cameras are being installed on the A10 but we need more traffic calming. TFL have apparently said that our roads are not dangerous enough for more works, but we regularly see people racing cars and bikes at all times of day and night.

Dates of future meetings

There was a discussion about this and it was decided to try and meet every TWO months. The next meeting was agreed for Tuesday 10th March. The meeting after that will probably be Tuesday 12th May.

Minutes of Tower Gardens Residents Group meeting: 24 July 2018

Minutes

Tower Gardens Residents Group

Meeting 24 July 2018 at Larkspur Close Meeting Room.

Present: Mary (Chair) Friedrich (vice chair) Matthew (sec), Fiona, Larbi, Collette, Dick, John Brown, Stuart, Thea, Grace, Karen, Ruth, Claudette.
Police: Lucy, Hassan, Simon, Pauline
Cllr Gideon Bull

Summary of Matters Discussed: 

Condition of estate – concerns raised about overhanging trees, and other areas of neglect. Dick said that tree works were coming soon.

Crime – five known burglars are operating in the area and police are monitoring their activities. Action is also being taken against drug dealers on the estate. Dealers are known to police.
There are also problems with bikes being raced down Risley Avenue.
The unmarked caravan parked on Risley Ave has recently moved but there are concerns it is a centre for antisocial behaviour of various kinds.
If anyone would like to find out more about the ‘Smartwater’ please contact Pauline.

Waltheof Gardens – there are no plans to build houses or flats here. There is not enough space. There may be proposals to build new higher quality social/health facilities to replace the existing 4 buildings.

Notice boards on the estate – these have been vandalised beyond repair and the meeting believes they should be replaced.

Conservation issues – the breezeblock extension on Risley Ave jct with Siward Road is awful. The Council has refused retrospective consent as the building does not meet any standards.

2A Risley Avenue – this is an eyesore and cars are parked in the front garden.

Littering and fly tipping continues to be a problem, and there are persistent problems regarding the bins on Lordship Lane that have never been resolved. Re: Homes for Haringey properties.

Tower Gardens Park – Zoe has been instrumental in getting a new friends group together. A friends group is really useful as it can bid for funds. There is now a Facebook page. 

Trees – Matthew has received a street tree pack to help us celebrate the trees on the estate.
Dick has been working with youth centres to help raise tree seeds for future plantings. Important to help increase ecological and amenity value.

Website – Larbi Ernst is liaising with Karen about updating the site.

Open House – this will take place on Sunday 23 September

Date of Next Meeting – Tuesday 11 September

Minutes of Tower Gardens Residents Group meeting: 13 March 2018

Minutes

13 March 2018 at Larkspur Close Meeting Room
Apologies: Philippa, Fiona, Chiara
Present: Mary (Chair), Friedrich (Vice chair), Matthew (Secretary), Karen (Treasurer), Zoe, Claudia, Ruth, Colette, Kata; Cllrs Adje, Bull and Stennett

There was a general discussion about the upcoming council elections and the fact that many councillors would be changing portfolio after that date.

1. Rubbish, fly tipping, Veolia collections etc.
There was no residential collection during the recent snow week, leading to widespread problems with overflowing bins etc. The lack of take up of brown bins for green waste in Tottenham was discussed. We think most people in N17 will not pay for the service, leading to further fly tipping and burning.
We also talked about street sweeping and how this is much more effective if it is done after the bins are emptied. Also it was pointed out that side streets within 50m of Lordship Lane should be swept every day. Also some of these streets would benefit from street bins, as most people will not walk any distance to put something in a bin.
We also raised again the subject of the bins on the street in Lordship Lane, which have been a problem here for years. ACTION – Gideon to update. We also drew attention to the awful bin for the flats at 1-2 Westbury Court which have been overflowing for weeks, next to a restaurant.
Action: Matthew to write to the council chief executive and environment member, and cc local councillors.

2. Street name plates
Cast iron ones date from the creation of the conservation area. Some are missing – how to replace? Ruth to see if Zena Brabazon has information about this. It would be useful to make a list of the missing name plates.

3. Potholes
These are numerous and can be reported via the Haringey app. For those who do not have app, look for My Haringey app on the app store on your phone. We decided in January to have a look for all the potholes and report them.

4. Street Trees
Matthew had been told by Alex Fraser, LBH Tree manager, that the trees we wanted would be planted this season, but this has not happened. Matthew to write again and cc councillors.

5. Conservation area issues
Some velux windows are cropping up to the front elevation which is not allowed. Dormer windows are not allowed front or rear.
People should email planning.enforcement@haringey.gov.uk to report them. ACTION – Gideon to look into what housing associations own property on the estate, as they are involved in many renovations.
Conservation Area anniversary – the 50th anniversary was actually in 2017, so unlikely LBH will be doing events in connection with it this year. New conservation area guidelines for Tower Gardens are due to be published by LBH later this year.

6. Parking
There is an abandoned caravan on Risley Avenue. ACTION: Gideon to investigate.

7. State of 100 Tower Gardens Road
<https://maps.google.com/?q=100+Tower+Gardens+Road&entry=gmail&source=g> This is a shambles. Notice board is totally vandalised. Can residents group have new notice boards on the estate, in a nice tasteful colour like black, that we can have access to?

8. Major Lordship Lane development
A development management forum was held for this, re a new building to replace Westbury Court. We did not think a planning app had been submitted, but following the meeting we found that it has. Matthew has commented on the application online on 14 March, stating our concerns that the building is too large, and mentioning the unsafe road crossings at this junction.

9. Future Dates:
3 May – Local Elections
15 May – next TGRG meeting
7 July – Matthew’s garden open for National Garden Scheme
15-16 September – Ruth organises Open House Weekend for the Estate

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