A new artist’s impression of how the O2 Centre will eventually look

• ANYONE who views the Landsec display of their plans for yet two more storeys on the O2 Centre development should be very wary of the developers’ spin.

I went on Thursday and talked to “the team”.

First of all, the extra storeys make up for the removal of one block, (Developer risks wrath of neighbours with bid for bigger, taller O2 site plans, October 17).

They’ve done this in order to create more “green space” and provide a community centre. They could provide those things by reducing the number of flats in the development.

They talk a lot about the community centre, even suggesting it can be a place for events such as concerts and other performances.

A community centre would be great, for local groups to meet, have talks, workshops, jumble sales, etc and for classes to be offered, such as those in the Maygrove Road facility.

But who is going to manage it, maintain it and organise the groups, classes, and so on? Landsec won’t; will Camden appoint and pay for someone to do this?

Landsec expects their section 106 money to cover things such as creating the community centre, but it’s not their money and they have no control over what Camden Council does with it.

As West Hampstead residents have seen in the past, the council can and does choose to spend whatever extra funding it gets elsewhere in the borough.

I asked how this development was going to benefit the community when we don’t have the resources to support it, doctors, dentists, school places and so on. I was told there would be space for a GPs’ surgery with room for 11 doctors.

But would they offer a reduced or no rent for the first year to provide an incentive to medical staff to come here?

The answer? “We’re working with the National Health Service on incentivising the practice.”

Great, but yet again, Landsec has no control over the NHS or how it will spend its money.

I asked how the tube, trains and buses are going to cope with the extra commuters if even half the number of people occupying this development use public transport in peak periods (which nowadays includes weekends).

They said the problem lay in the capacity of the ticket hall and they would add a new entrance at the other end of the platforms.

How will this help when the platform gets so crowded, people can’t always access it?

Regarding the loss of Sainsbury’s, which has previously said it would not return to the site if there were no parking facilities, I was told that there would be a smaller supermarket as “everyone shops online now”.

Do they? I don’t.

Finally, if you fill out the survey, be aware of how skewed the questions are.

For example, questions ask “do you want more family-sized flats”, but if you say yes, they’ll take that as a go-ahead for their overall plans for the area.

MARCIA MacLEOD, NW6