Cabinet councillor Angela Mason told a public meeting that the total cost of the 11-storey tower at Liddell Road was £46million, which prevented them from building more social housing

Published: 30 September, 2014
by ALICE HUTTON
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DEVELOPERS behind a £46million tower block planned for West Hampstead were told to “go back to the drawing board” at a heated public meeting.

Anger surrounds a bid to build an 11-storey tower at the Liddell Road site. It would include a new building for Kingsgate Primary School.

Residents clashed with developer Maccreanor Lavington and council officers at the meeting at Sidings Community Centre last Wednesday.

An initial plan to build as high as 14 storeys has been trimmed to 11 floors. The first plan made no allowance for affordable housing. The revised plans will create four cheaper homes from a total of 100.

The changes, however, have failed to convince people living nearby, who shouted  “greed”, “lies” and “profit”. Some acc­used the council of making the school “a front for property development”. 

Cabinet councillor Angela Mason told the meeting that, although the development would be part-funded by a £6.7million government grant, the total cost was £46million, which prevented them from building more social housing.

Branko Viric’s garage is one of 21 light industrial businesses whose premises are due to be bulldozed at the site and replaced with 2,500sqm commercial space. He claimed he had been put “over the barrel of a gun” by the council to either accept a buy-off or “go to court and be evicted”.

Mr Viric, owner of West Hampstead Motors, told the developer and council officials: “I would like to know how you sleep at night in the knowledge that you are destroying 200 jobs?”

Architects were grilled on how they expected to sell £500,000 flats and space for light industrial businesses when the development is “car free”.

Concerns were raised that Maygrove Road would be turned into a “rat-run” by the extra 100 units as well as by parents dropping their kids off.

James Earl, chairman of West Hampstead and Fortune Green Neighbourhood Development Plan, said: “I still think that 11 storeys is too high. This site is not in a growth area, it is not marked for intensification, so why do we need such a high tower block in an area of low housing?”

He added that the concession of 4 per cent social housing was “the real shocker”, given the council’s recent election manifesto pledge to provide 50 per cent in council-funded developments.

Labour regeneration supremo Councillor Phil Jones laid the blame for the lack of social housing on a withdrawal of funds from Whitehall and said “no one does 50 per cent anymore”.