Devonshire Hill, north London

A DAY LEFT UNTIL 9 FEBRUARY – ANOTHER HEIGHT INCREASE for 500 White Hart Lane!



View from the Green, Devonshire Hill Lane, of the new proposed development (artist's impression).

Once again, a private company and Haringey planning are ramming through an unannounced “consultation” period. You have A WEEK LEFT LEFT to comment if you have anything to say about a STEALTHY HEIGHT INCREASE for the proposed tower blocks at 500 White Hart Lane.

Not only that, but Haringey has CHANGED THE WEB PAGE for the application. This means that our previous objections to the development aren't there anymore. All the earlier comments only exist on the older, closed web page!


The deadline is FEBRUARY 9 2018. 
  • It appears that Tottenham Hotspurs corporation has quietly sold 500 WHL to a company called Fairview New Homes.
  • Fairview are still asking for an INCREASE IN HEIGHT TO THE TOWER BLOCKS to 7 storeys. They filed a request for this, then withdrew it. Then the reference number has changed, and the 7 storeys are quietly back!
  • Fairview have also ABANDONED the promise to tie the development in with the footpath on the east side of the site. Instead they want to erect a MASSIVE TWO METRE STEEL FENCE.
  • Neighbours were NOT NOTIFIED of this secretive and brief “consultation.” Not even an email. Just the keen eyes of local neighbours meant we know about it.
  • There are NO promises for any mitigation to the impact these towers will have on our neighbourhood! Nothing about the dangerous road crossing by the petrol station. Nothing about the hundreds of new residents needing buses and other services. Nothing about the overcrowding in schools, or the lack of doctors’ surgeries.
Instead the corporate representatives at the marketing show the other month merely smiled and said they were donating some money to Haringey’s general coffers.

Make no mistake. These tower blocks will COST our community. They will COST Haringey council in the long-term, for a small amount of short-term cash. They will COST the people who move into the flats.

We fought for and won a height limit. Now Fairview New Homes are sneakily creeping that height back up.

HOW TO TELL THE COUNCIL WHAT YOU THINK:
  • Click on “Comment on Application”
  • Fill in the form.
  • Click on "Inform the Authority that you object to the Planning Application”
  • Tell the council that you object to the short and unannounced consultation period, that you don’t want massive tower blocks looming over our community, that you object to the height increase, that it will cost the community and the council to parachute hundreds of new residents into the area with no new amenities. And anything else that concerns you!
Thank you!

- DHRA

JULY 2017


The developers are seeking permission for buildings to rise as much as twice the height of existing houses on Devonshire Hill Lane.

There is a proposal to build urban-style 5-7 storey tower blocks in our beautiful neighbourhood. 

Haringey Council Planning re-opened the consultation period for 500 Devonshire Hill Lane. This closed officially on Thursday, 30 June. 

There was a flood of comments, all in opposition, from our neighbourhood. Click the black button below to view them.




REPORT FROM PUBLIC MEETING FOR 500 WHITE HART LANE PROPOSAL

Haringey Council called a public meeting on 9 June with the developer to discuss the project with concerned residents. The meeting took place in the Selby Community Centre, Selby Road, N17 8JL.

Over 70 people packed into a room in the Selby Centre to hear developers explain their plan to build a series of tower blocks in a small site on White Hart Lane over a mile from the nearest tube and train stations.  The developers said that they have read the responses to the consultation so far and have changed their proposals. At the meeting they outlined what these changes were. 

They include
  • Reducing the maximum height from 7 to 6 storeys 
  • Moving some blocks a few metres away from housing on the west of the plot (Devonshire Gardens) 
  • Moving an access road, and having a separate road for the 'business site'
  • Introducing a community / retail space in the front block
  • Reinstating a bus stop (TFL will do this anyway) 
However there is 
  • No significant reduction in density (144 flats instead of 145?)
  • No increase in parking allocation
  • No changes in height to the rest of the blocks
The rear building design does not change. This means:
  • No reduction in height of the block at the rear of the site from 5 storeys  
  • No change to the plan to build up to the slope (equivalent to 2-3 storeys) 
The rear building at the north of the site, will tower over adjacent houses on The Green, Devonshire Hill Lane, and be clearly visible in the surrounding area. No thought or consideration has been made to the impact on Devonshire Hill Lane. 

The developers say the slope rises to a height that equates to a further 2-3 storeys (the Screwfix/Selco site next door has a retaining wall at the rear rising at least 6m). Effectively, the height of the proposal at the rear (north) is equivalent to a 7-8 storey building were it built on the level. 

Residents were furious. A straw poll carried out by DHRA in the meeting showed unanimous opposition from residents present to the proposal. In the meeting the developer's representative told residents that 'basically, you have to stop us'. Residents vowed to get organised to do just that. 

The Council representatives agreed that the formal consultation process with residents on the new proposal* would be re-opened, now with an official end date of 30 June. Click on the button below to review the proposal, the changes and other people's comments, and to submit your objection.

Residents were also very concerned that the local Councillors were not present (we have since identified that the Council did not notify or invite them). In the meeting a  council official claimed that "only one" councillor had expressed opposition - this is a misrepresentation which we hope that our councillors can correct!


*Note that the revised proposal is in the set of documents headed 'June 2016 Amendment'. You will need to scroll down to find these.

http://devonshirehill.org.uk/500-whl

More information on the 500 White Hart Lane proposal

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