Sydenham Road Community Street Audit

[Annie]

I'm still confused as to why "they"took our lovely flower roundabout away?
any one know why?

[castiron73]

Even in the b&w photo the lack of greenery is apparent.
There are lots of hatched areas painted all the way down the middle of the road.
Would it be possible to put a line of trees here instead, with gaps at the junctions? Might be fewer pipes and drains than by the kerbs.

Imagine the Sydenham Champs-Elysees...

[annabel mclaren]

For some reason in the photo from the 60s the road layout looks much calmer and more spacious - I don't think this is simply down to there being less traffic. The 2 small islands (the one in the foreground having a 'pear drop' shape) with their connecting zebra crossings give more possiblilities for pedestrians to cross at logical places. It might not be possible to go back to this layout but abandoning the current roundabout for traffic lights (one suggestion, I think) could mean that the 'gateway to Sydenham' might become just another lights-controlled junction. I think a smaller roundabout or plinth topped by a statue would be great - and the obvious candidate is of course Shackleton.

[castiron73]

How about John Logie Baird on top of a television set?

[Steve Grindlay]

...I think a smaller roundabout or plinth topped by a statue would be great - and the obvious candidate is of course Shackleton

I agree, annabel, I've always felt that [Frank Shackleton] had received too little recognition.

[leaf]

[annabel mclaren]

Another interesting candidate would be Eleanor Marx...

[Juwlz]

Hi

I went to the Living streets walk today and I was fairly surprised there were not more people from Sydenham Town forum as it was an amazing opportunity to have some input into the regeneration of the high st. Maybe you all went on Friday instead
The people conducting the audit really need the help of locals or they can't be to blame if the results aren't up to scratch!

Its not too late to have your tuppence h'penny's worth since they will be distributing leaflets and having a 'roadshow' next weekend on the high street apparently. There is also a meeting this thursday of the Sydenham Road Regeneration Partnership (whoever they are). It's at the Naborhood Centre on Thursday 7 December at 7 pm.

[stuart]

I went to the Living streets walk today and I was fairly surprised there were not more people from Sydenham Town forum

I spotted four - and I don't know you by sight - so that makes at least five. I'll post some pix tomorrow so we can play X marks the STF member!

PS Don't forget we can all meet again at the Regeneration meet Thursday evening. Same place, 8pm I think. Cllr Chris Best in the chair.

[Pat Trembath]

The next quarterly meeting of the Sydenham Road Regeneration Partnership will be on Thursday 7 December at the Naborhood Cnetre at 7 pm. This meeting is open to all interested in the future of Sydenham.

Chaired by Cllr Chris Best, the Agenda for Thursday's meeting includes information about the Sydenham Road audit. There will also be a presentation on CCTV in Sydenham; an update on Sydenham Safer Neighbourhood Team; a report from Sydenham Town Centre Manager, Julie Sutch; and updates on the East London line and Forest Hill Pools and Library.

Future dates for diaries include the Area Forum (a meeting for all residents in Forest Hill, Perry Vale and Sydenham Wards) on January 30 (venue to be confirmed) and a joint SRRP/Sydenham Society meeting in early March to discuss the East London Line (date yet to be confirmed)

[stuart]

Thanks for the correction Pat. You can spot yourself and a few others at the Saturday Walkabout here: http://sydenham.org.uk/news_living_streets.html

Not me - I'm behind the camera!

Stuart

[biscuitman1978]

I went to the Living streets walk today and I was fairly surprised there were not more people from Sydenham Town forum

I spotted four - and I don't know you by sight - so that makes at least five. I'll post some pix tomorrow so we can play X marks the STF member!

I was there, but preferred to introduce myself as Richard (my real name) rather than biscuitman1978 (my user name on this forum)!

[stuart]

Here is Chris Best's email received this evening ...

I am just letting you know that the next Sydenham meeting is on this Thursday - 7 December - starting at 7pm at the Naborhood Centre in Sydenham Road, next to the Post Office.

The first presentation will be on CCTV in Sydenham followed by an update on the Safer Neighbourhoods Team; Ian Plowright will be reporting back on the current consultation on Sydenham Road; Julie Sutch has been working on the Christmas festivities and I will give an update on the Localities Fund.

There will be the usual exchange of information so please let me know if there is a specific item you wish to cover.

Please forward this email to other residents as the meeting is open to all who live and work in Sydenham.

Kind regards

Chris

Cllr Chris Best
Cabinet Member for Community Services
London Borough of Lewisham

[Chris Best]

Many thanks to everyone who came along to SCRP on Thursday evening and shared views on this stage of the consultation with Ian Plowright. Ian is checking on the distribution of the questionnaire to make sure residents living within a 5 minute walk from the area between Cobbs Corner and Mayow Road have received a leaflet (includes the Thorpes on the north side and the boundary to Bromley on the south side). Please could you give your views by the 5 January 2007 . There are leaflets in Sydenham library and also an online reply on Lewisham's web site - http://www.lewisham.gov.uk.

The next stage will be to design a scheme for Sydenham Road and for further consultation in April/May. The proposal will then be worked up for submission to Transport for London in the Summer.

There will be more meetings for feedback and further consultation - the Area Forum meeting will be on Tuesday 30 January. This is a real opportunity for you to have your say on how we can improve our high street. For the past four years we have been bidding for funds and with an attractive design we could get up to £2 million from Transport for London.

Please keep sharing your views including whether to have traffic lights or a mini roundabout at Cobbs Corner - should we replace the current traffic lights with mini roundabouts and have more pedestrian crossings? I will be listening to the range of views and will certainly be supporting making the high street more cycle friendly.

[GLOBAL THINKER]

Hi Chris,

The area between Cobbs Corner and Mayow Road has some the most expensive housing in Sydenham. As the talk is of "millions" with regards to investment, surely the area past Mayow Road towards Bell Green is in need of more investment? What are the plans for these areas in the grand scheme of things??

[sarahc]

Chris,

I would be interested in your view regarding Bell Green too.

sarahc

[nasaroc]

I too welcome Chris Best's views on the development of the area between Mayow Road and Bell Green. In the meantime, here is my view.

The reason that the area from Cobb's Corner to Mayow Road has been chosen as the first choice for investment is that it has a very strong chance of regenerating itself with the help of some start-up public investment like that being provided by TFL as part of Living Streets. It is the "core" shopping area of Sydenham and will soon have a billion pound new "underground" line running into its heart. Redevelopment is already evident - we can see a number of new investment schemes in the core shopping area (the Nickell's site, the site above the railway bridge etc, etc).

So what about the area from Mayow Road to Bell Green? Undoubtedly, the regeneration of the core shopping area will have a "knock-on" effect further down the High Street. We are already seeing this. SG Smith's new showroom and the reopened Dolphin are good examples.

I have little doubt that, in five year's time, the area from Cobb's to Kent House Road will be virtually unrecognisable from what it is today.

But the area lower down, beyond Kent House is clearly another matter. Here is an part of Sydenham which has many positive points - some good streets, a library and a potentially nice park.

However, I wouldn't be particularly optimistic about the chances for significant regeneration of this area in the near future. The redevelopment of Bell Green along largely retail lines has sucked the heart out of what remains of shops in this area and will continue to do so in the future. The area also has a large proportion of social housing and poor rail links. Despite very rapidly rising house prices in this area, newcomers are going to be looking in central Sydenham and "up the hill" before they move in here.

Clearly, throwing large sums of public money into an area like this without a strategy for redevelopment would simply be crazy. The experience of Lewisham's Deptford Challenge around ten years ago, shows how millions of pounds of taxpayer's money can be sunk into a poor area without very much to show for it. The current LBL strategy for Deptford, based on attracting the well-heeled into the area has much more chance of success.

Sorry if you are reading this and live in the area between Kent House Road and Bell Green. I'm not trying to run down the area in which you live, just trying to produce a realistic analysis. Good transport and lots of people with high disposable incomes are what regenerates an area. If anyone has a different view, I'd love to hear it.

[Greg Whitehead]

Agreed Nasaroc. I am very much on the cusp living in Knighton Park Road. This weekend I counted 4 houses that were being completely renovated in my street and by that I mean back to the brickwork - not just a new kitchen but completely gutted. Now, as my tired thighs will confess this is more than on any other street in the whole of Sydenham and coupled with the immediacy of Trewsbury Road (Sydenham's premier street - fact!) and the Thorpes it ought to be a good sign (even if I am moving out...on second thoughts maybe that's another positive).

But yes this is on the 'brink' being paralell to Kent House Road. If the shops and streets could be improved further down toward Bell Green then it would help. There are some very handsome uniform Victorian streets there (wasn't the first ever Property Ladder programme from Highclere St?) but I feel that as it is over 10 mins from the station it stunts any investment thoughts as many people discount it as being too far from the station. I know I did when I first came to buy in Sydenham.

[GLOBAL THINKER]

But the area lower down, beyond Kent House is clearly another matter. Here is an part of Sydenham which has many positive points - some good streets, a library and a potentially nice park.

With this in mind, surely the audit should have started at this end and worked its way up to Cobbs Corner and not the other way round. It seems like a case of money going to money. I am curious to know how may £millions Lewisham Council are talking about. Surely you spend money on the areas that need it most? (Naive, I know ).

[Annie]

Global, have you seen the wobbly roundabout us "rich people" have to contend with?