The Civic Society

for Gravesend and Northfleet


Decorate St Andrew's Gardens for Christmas

Saturday 12th December at 2pm

Help re-claim St. Andrew's Gardens as our public space by hanging your old, new, handmade decorations from the trees in an afternoon of festive fun. Bring hot drinks and nibbles.



Annual Christmas Social

Thursday 10th December 2009 @ 7:30pm to 11:30pm

At The Three Daws pub (function room)

Admission £3 per person. Tickets available on the door.



St Andrew's Picnic Great Success

The latest Urban Gravesham picnic on St Andrew's Gardens was a huge success. Around 200 people turned out to enjoy a picnic, play games and listen to music.



See the Gravesend Messenger coverage here.


Council Leader Upset for Being Depicted as Demolition Man

(or in other words as thousands of people already saw him)

Councillor Mike Snelling has reacted with anything but a smile over a comical image mocking him in a digger pose. The rather fetching (in some people's view) 'Bob' outfit image has left the councillor in somewhat of a fury.

Perhaps he now has an inkling over how many people feel about what he is trying to do to our much loved town.

Read the full story with a copy of the image here.
Read Councillor Ray Parker's take on the article here.

Read Private Eye's coverage here.



Urban Gravesham at Town Regatta

Urban Gravesham were out in force at this year's regatta. Members manned a very informative stall with large displays showing in detail the Edinburgh House development. The end result was hundreds of additional people signed up against the development scheme. Well done to all involved. See the pictures.

Council attempt to ban Urban Gravesham from the Big Day Out

Urban Gravesham were out in force at this year's BIG DAY OUT at the promenade on 4th of July. Members manned a very informative stall with large displays showing in detail the Edinburgh House development.
 
Our presence at Day was arranged and paid for months ago. Despite this the Council questioned our right to be at the event and were actually quite rude and intimidatory. In the end, we had to rely on the police to uphold our right to be at the event.
 
Despite the Council's attempt to ban our Civic Society from the Big Day Out, we stayed all day at the event, received great support from people attending and distributed thousands of leaflets, stickers and balloons and gained many new members.
 
Urban Gravesham has always tried to present a positive agenda for the future development of the town, we have worked hard to present all councillors with alternative ideas  to the hated Edinburgh House scheme; it is a great shame that Gravesham Council continues to treat us with such unwarranted hostility.  The Council should remember that we represent the views of thousands of local people and that we will continue to campaign at every opportunity to defend our riverside heritage.

Read some of the very positve media feedback we received here.

Great Council Selloff

A Freedom of Information request was made to the council to ' identify all land owned by the Borough Council which have been declared surplus to requirements and/or offered for sale within the last two years'. The council provided 2 lists, the first one shows all property recently sold and the second is the list being considered.

Sold:
Doctors Surgery Site, Istead Rise
Land at Clarence Place
Leisure Depot, Old Road West
Land r/o Old Northfleet Town Hall
Land at Tooley Street
Christian Fields Redevelopment Site
Land at Scrattonfields, Cobham
Land at Wycliffe Row, Northfleet (4 Building Plots)
Cygnet House, Windmill Street
Land r/o Milton Place, Gravesend
Land at Hartshill Road, Northfleet (Adjacent Cemetery)
Land at Lawrence Square, Northfleet
Land at Evenden Road, Meopham
Land at Youens Cottages, Higham
Land at Newton Abbot Road, Northfleet

Considered:
Heritage Quarter including St Andrews
Land at Alanbrooke, Trinity Road,Milton Barracks
Land at Horn Yard r/o No. 20/21 High Street, Gravesend
Land at Horn Yard r/o No. 6-11 High Street, Gravesend
Gravesend & District Theatre Guild Site, Vale Road
Land at Canal Basin Redevelopment, Gravesend
Land r/o Dover Road, Northfleet
Huntley Avenue Building Plots
Parrock Street Underground Toilets
Land at Lawn Road, Northfleet
Ladies WC, The Hill
Land at Brookvale Allotments
Building Plot at St Albans Gardens
Land at Istead Rise, Worcester Close


Cygnet House Proposals

Conversion of first to fifth floors and construction of a sixth floor to provide 40 self contained flats, comprising 24 x one bedroom, 13 x two bedroom and 3 x three bedrooms flats with commercial floorspace on the ground floor involving erection of three/four storey extension on south elevation; full height stairwell extension on north elevation and single storey front extension; laying out of 40 car parking spaces and provision of cycle and refuse stores. Planning Application # 20080173.
You can view the full details and leave comments on the council web site via this link.





Gravesend Police Station Proposals

Commencing with the demolition of the existing Gravesend Police Station @ Zion Place & Windmill Street and then the erection of four new buildings, each of 4-6 storeys, to provide a total of 86 two & three bedroom apartments as well as a total of 923 sq metres of commercial space at the ground floor of three of the four new blocks plus 98 car parking spaces at Basement Level. Planning Application # 0080095.You can view the full details and leave comments on the council web site via this link.
Urban Gravesham object to the overall scale and bulk of this scheme and believe that the building should be the same size as those in surrounding areas. Urban Gravesham hope to persuade the Council to reject this planning application.
You can download and read the full text of the letter sent to the council there.


police station

police station






Conservation Area appraisals

Conservation Area appraisals for High Street, Queen Street, King Street, Harmer Street, Milton Place, Gravesend Riverside, Hospital & Commercial Quarter, Upper Windmill Street and Windmill Hill Conservation Area.

The draft appraisals for the above nine Conservation Areas have been written and are now available for public viewing and comments. Please provide your feedback to the council.

The consultation documents and questionnaires can be downloaded from Gravesham Borough Council's website: www.gravesham.gov.uk/conservation. Printed versions of the documents are available for inspection at the Civic Centre, Towncentric and Gravesend Library, Windmill Street.

There is also an exhibition of the draft appraisals in Towncentric until 7 January 2008.


Victory for residents:

Land to North of 76 Darnley Road (Bedford)

A planning application to build 4 two bedroom houses and 13 two bedroom flats on this land was rejected by Gravesham Council.
The applicant appealed the decision and a public inquiry was held on 25th September 2007.
The decision has now been published and we are happy to say the appeal has been dismissed.

A big thank you to all the residents that wrote in and also for Gravesham Council in opposing the application.


Urban Gravesham to fight test case:

The Bedford , Darnely Road

In March 2007 the Council received a planning application to extend The Bedford, Darnley Road - a wonderful, almost untouched, Victorian house. The proposal was for a massive extension that would totally dominate the original house. Despite protests from residents in the area planning permission was given after the 25th July regulatory board committee (Delegated to the Director)

There are several worrying aspects to this case:

- The conservation officer's (the Council's expert on historic buildings) advice has been clear the proposals were damaging to the historic character of the house and the wider area. This advice appears to have been ignored.

- The planning report (upon which councillors base their decision) did not assess the effect of the proposals on the original house or on the wider area, nor did it mention the conservation officer's advice. In this it was seriously deficient. An illegal decision may have been taken as a result.

- The report stated that the Council could lose money if it refused the planning application and the developer appealed this refusal. This is not a sound basis on which to make a responsible planning decision and - again an illegal decision may have been taken as a result.

- Once the permission had been given, Darnley Road residents sought advice from officers at the Council about possible steps they could take to continue their fight against the development. Whist it is true that there is no right of appeal for residents about the decision itself, they were wrongly informed by Council officers that there were no further steps. There is in fact a right to seek judicial review i.e. look into the legalities of the case.

- The planning decision was conditional. More information had to be supplied by the developers to the Council before the developers had the right to start the building work. However, the developers have gone ahead and started. The Council has been slow in serving a stop notice but has now done so and the works have stopped. However- not in time to save the historic coach house.


Urban Gravesham has decided to look at this case on behalf of the residents of Darnley Road. It has written to the Council, complaining in very strong terms about the Council's inadequate handling of this case. Along with residents it is now considering whether to apply for a judicial review. However this could cost money, particularly if the developer chooses to fight the case. Urban Gravesham is now appealing for funds.

The full version of the claim against the council can be read here

Do you support Urban Gravesham? If so please feel free make a donation or join our group. Contact info@urbangravesham.org