Month: April 2015

Response from The Pinner Association to the Proposal to build Retirement Apartments at the ESSO Petrol Station site in Marsh Road, Pinner

April 2015
The Executive Committee of The Pinner Association has considered the proposals outlined in the consultation document “Churchill Retirement Living Proposed Retirement Apartments in Pinner” and on the Churchill Retirement Living website:
http://www.churchillretirement.co.uk/planning/live-consultations/proposed-site-pinner/

and has the following comments, which are being submitted as a formal response to the current consultation:
The proposal by Churchill Retirement Living is for 30 one and two bedroomed apartments, with one guest accommodation unit, parking for 9 vehicles, two vehicular access points, one on either side of the site (one off a driveway shared with Evans House), and the main pedestrian access directly off Marsh Road. The new building is proposed to be four storeys in height with a traditional style pitched tiled roof.   The height of the new building would respect the heights of the adjoining buildings. A small area of landscaped amenity space and the car park are proposed to be located adjacent to the bank of the River Pinn which flows along the rear boundary of the site.

1. Currently this site in Marsh Road Pinner is used as a petrol station which has a small convenience shop and car wash on the premises.   This is an important amenity for many Pinner, Rayners Lane and North Harrow residents, as it is the biggest and most conveniently located petrol station remaining on the north side of Harrow.   The petrol station has a large forecourt which allows vehicles to queue for space at the pumps without spilling on to and blocking the carriageway of Marsh Road. This petrol station is very popular and is usually busy, and is a valued asset for the local community.
2. The next nearest petrol station is located north of Pinner at Pinner Green. That petrol station is located on the very busy Uxbridge Road, adjacent to a mini-roundabout allowing access to the entrance of a Tesco supermarket. The Pinner Green petrol station has a very small forecourt, and any more than a couple of cars waiting to use the pumps results in vehicles queuing on the carriageway of the A410 Uxbridge Road, which can severely affect the traffic flow of this main route at busy times.
3. Closing the Marsh Road petrol station would greatly increase the local usage of the Pinner Green petrol station, which could cause more frequent congestion and traffic flow problems on the A410 Uxbridge Road.
4. The nearest alternative petrol station to the south of Marsh Road is located in North Harrow, at 3, Station Road. This is a small filling station located on a very busy through route, and any traffic queues created by vehicles waiting to gain access to the pumps would inevitably would cause traffic congestion and delays. It would also not be convenient for many Pinner residents to travel out of their way and through busy traffic to use this petrol station. The next nearest petrol stations to those listed above are at Old Eastcote (which we understand has been sold and may be closed) and at Northwood Hills, and this latter site is again on a very busy and often congested through route and access to the forecourt is via a heavily parked and relatively narrow side turning, which could be easily blocked by a vehicle waiting to enter the forecourt.
5. Currently in this part of Marsh Road, Pinner there is granted planning consent (subject to legal agreement with Harrow Council) for a block of 25 one and two bedroomed flats on the vacant plot next to the railway bridge, and two previous office buildings (Evans House and Kingsbridge House) are being converted to 28 and 12 flats respectively under Permitted Development. This will result in a great increase in the intensity of occupation of this part of Pinner, with concomitant extra stress being placed on the local infrastructure such as health services.
6. In the last few years Pinner has lost one GP practice, and the subsequent large increase in the number of patients registered at the Pinn Medical Centre has resulted in a reported lower level of satisfaction of many patients using (or attempting to use) this facility. The extra residents of the many new flats in Pinner (not just those in Marsh Road, as there are 26 new flats currently being marketed at 71 Bridge Street and a block of 9 more flats has granted planning consent at 69, West End Lane, both close to Marsh Road) will further adversely increase the pressure on the local infrastructure.
7. The Pinner Association is currently in discussion with Cllr David Perry, Leader, Harrow Council, on the topic of ‘overcrowding in Pinner due to exponential increases in dwellings’.
8. Building even more new flats, albeit retirement flats, will merely increase the already overstretched local services and further increase the density of occupation of this part of Pinner. Additionally the closure of the petrol station will be a real loss of an asset important to the local and wider community.

 

The initial question to Cllr Keith Ferry:  We have been told that there will be a second round of consultation about the future of Pinner Park Farm.  When will that be? 

The response from Cllr Keith Ferry seemed to allude to the fact that the option for ‘status quo’ was clearly one of the options set out in the detail from which the public could have made their choice during the consultation.  No definite date was given for when the second round will take place and there seemed to be an over-emphasis  for when the Harrow ‘masterplan’ would be ready at which point the next ‘stage’ would commence.  (Note that the masterplan is the Regeneration Plan http://www.harrow.gov.uk/info/100009/leisure_and_culture/965/heart_of_harrow but could also be confused with ‘Heart of Harrow’ planning which is also mentioned in the information on the Harrow Council website but which is part of the same programme).

 

The supplementary question to Cllr Keith Ferry: In the first round of the consultation a majority of residents were in favour of retaining the farm as an agricultural enterprise.  In view of this, will the council guarantee in the second consultation, to include this (ie. the status quo) as an option and to give it equal prominence with the proposal for a country park?

Cllr Keith Ferry responded by stating that when the masterplan is complete it will include this site as one of the local considerations and that in the next stage of consultation for the site it will be made “absolutely clear that the status quo is an option that can be chosen”.

 

Please appreciate that it is difficult to remember word-for-word the response so please do check the recording at this link in a few days.   http://www.harrow.gov.uk/www2/ieListDocuments.aspx?CId=249&MId=62362

Harrow Open Studios

Media Release – 22 April 2015

HOS 2015 and Exhibitions
Harrow Open Studios is an independent and diverse group of over 38 artists whose main focus, each year, is to invite the public to visit their homes and studios for an exhibition of their work. Visitors will be able to meet the artist, ask questions, purchase work or arrange a commission.

The 8^th annual Open Studio event will take place from Saturday 6^th June to Monday 8^th June, Saturday 13^th June and Sunday 14^th June 2015.
Admission to all studios is free.

Throughout May Harrow Open Studios artists has a taster exhibition of work at Harefield Hospital in the Hungary Hare Restaurant and Rebeat Gallery with 30% of each sale donated to projects within the hospital.

During May the Harrow Arts Centre is hosting a free taster exhibition of work by Harrow Open Studios artists in The Gallery and corridors.
Work on display includes paintings, ceramics, jewellery, prints, wood turning and textiles. Five new artists this year include Pinner-based Eva and Brian Cowan. As Eva Rueber-Staier, the former has been a ‘Miss World’ and a Bond girl before studying art Harrow Arts Centre and she now produces steel sculptures. Subject matter includes human and animal sculptures, wall hangings and abstract exhibits. Brian was an art director before homing in on drawing and painting, particularly sports action, landscapes, and portraits.

For details about artists and studio opening times visit www.harrowopenstudios.com and its links to Facebook and Twitter.

Brochures available at Harefield Hospital, Harrow Arts Centre and Harrow libraries as well as wide local distribution. Also downloadable from the website.

www.harrowopenstudios.com

t:@HarrowOpStudios    f: Harrow Open Studios

Harrow Open Studios invites you to a PRIVATE VIEWfor an exhibition of Art created by its members.
at: The Gallery, Harrow Art Centre, Uxbridge Road, Hatch End, HA5 4EA.
6-8pm Friday 1st May 2015

The Mayor, Harrow Councillor Ajay Maru, will be attending.

Refreshments available.

This exhibition is on for the month of May

Harrow Open Studios will be on for the two weekends 6th-7th-8th June and 13th-14th June
[email protected]
www.harrowopenstudios.com
www.harrowarts.com

 

As usual the Wheelbarrow Race was one of the highlights of the celebrations on Sunday 19 April.

A planning application is to be made to replace the Esso petrol station in Marsh Road with s block of retirement flats.
There was a lack of information about these plans as  they did not even send out the leaflets until the first week of April, and the website only went live after the MD  of the Churchill  spin off property development company (they are actually preparing these plans)had been emailed  and asked why their plans were not visible online.
Thanks to the dogged persistence of the Association Secretary the consultation has been extended until 30^th April.

The plans can be viewed at http://www.churchillretirement.co.uk/planning/live-consultations/proposed-site-pinner/

 

The Village Hall was packed on 15 April for the AGM when there was the opportunity to raise questions currently concerning the Community.

Pat Clarke gave an interesting presentation on the history of Pinner Park Farm, which gave those attending the opportunity to air their views on the Council’s proposals for its future.  A further public consultation is to take place. The earlier one had been a complete farce.

Planning issues and the maintenance of Pinner’s parks took up most of  the discussion.  Planning issues concerned the erection of a 6 storey block of flats on the site of the former George public house and the loss of the Pinner Esso station in Marsh Road to a block of retirement flats – see later posting.

 

On 2 April the Leader of Harrow Council, David Perry, held a series of short meetings at West House to enable residents to express their views  on matters of concern to them.

On this occasion there was a large gathering of people concerned with the future arrangements for the maintenance of the Memorial Park, which had been changed recently, resulting in protests from the many users of the park. He certainly received vociferous protests from the many people assembled in West House and had to retreat to a quieter venue, the Shrine Room, in order for him to conduct the meetings in suitable surroundings.

                                                    Posters protesting about the poor maintenance arrangements.
(Click to enlarge)

                                                          David Perry meeting Pinner Assn and HRMT representatives.