Friday 16 December 2011

Olympic bid to occupy Leyton Marsh

updated 1 Jan 2012
updated 11 Jan 2012
updated 15 JAn 2012

It is still worth sending objections (11 Jan). 


The Olympics Development Authority (ODA) have applied to Waltham Forest council for permission to erect on Leyton Marsh a basketball training centre comprising:
  • Two 11 metre high modular court buildings
  • A tented reception facility
  • An access road
  • A drop off area
  • Car Park
  • Plant storage containers
  • Perimeter fencing
The location will be be to the north of the Ice Centre. Construction is planned to start on 1 March and the ODA say they will be off the site by 15 October.

Residents in Hackney have several concerns about this application. They can be summarised as:
  • Increased traffic congestion on and around Lea Bridge Road
  • Light pollution into buildings and surrounding land on the Hackney side of the River Lea
  • Noise pollution from tannoys  into buildings and surrounding land from the courts themselves and associated amenities
  • Loss of amenity for Hackney and Waltham Forest residents in terms of loss of open green space
  • Detrimental effect on wildlife both through the immediate loss of habitat on the site, and through loss of part of the buffer zone  between the Ice Centre and the Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) on Leyton Marsh
For more detail see the very detailed objection from the New Lammas Lands Defence Committee.

If you wish to object or comment to this proposal you should write to:
Terunesh McCoy

Development and Management Group
London Borough of Waltham Forest
Sycamore House
Forest Road
London E17 4JF

Please quote application number 2011/1560.

The planning notice is dated 12 December and objections and comments originally had to be received within 21 days of that date, i.e. 2nd January 2012.

But the officer's report is not yet written and it is still worth sending objections (at 11 Jan). When the situation changes we'll update this item again.

If you want any more information please contact committee member

Please post any objection or comment preferably as a comment here for other people to see, and/or to Barry.

15 comments:

  1. Is this going to be temporary or permanent?

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  2. how about using south millfields basket ball courts and putting in changing rooms for the circketers instead.

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  3. If this does go ahead, what assurances do we have that it will be taken down afterwards and the area made good etc? And what positive legacy will be left? Also, why wasn't this facility accounted for in the original planning?

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  4. Could be a great opportunity to get something permanent in the park. Changing rooms for tennis basket and cricket are much needed. This could be the hub that was discussed in the master plan consultation, with a nice little bar. Now, how to drag attention towards Millfields Park, is opposing the right thing to do. Let's face it it is a temporary setup in a rather underused part of the marshes...

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  5. Local cafes and bars are already struggling to survive. The idea of a hub in S Millfields was a rather fanciful idea and is particularly so in the current economic climate!
    S.Millfields has already been over built on with much precious green space either concreted over or destroyed.
    Surely one of the functions of a park users group should be to protect its valuable biodiversity.

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  6. What a f******g cheek!!! They have already taken a massive chunk of East London for the Olympic Park proper. This is filled up with lots of private flats, retail, and even a corporate 'networking' area (We could assume they have the money to pay for their own networking space?). Then we get 'Oh we now need some parking space, so we need to concrete over a significant part of the Marshes football pitches area' - no irony here whatsoever about encouraging grassroots sports participation?
    How dare they now ask to take over the area behind the Ice Rink! I'm sorry but local people's leisure facilities are far more important than a 4-week corporate spectacle, in which most local people have no means to participate (unless working for free as a 'volunteer'. Let's not forget who gets priority on tickets - corporate sponsors - many of whom pay no tax (courtesy of a lunch with HMRC. Local Council Tax payers like ourselves, who are forced to pay for the Olympics, get nothing.
    The answer is obvious. You've shit in my backyard enough already, find somewhere else! Maybe Newham Council could locate it on the plot where they're closing down the local swimming pool.
    P.S. Haven't got a login here - my email is mralowe@yahoo.com

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  7. There is still time to object. The deadline is the end of Tuesday 2nd January and we think the number of objections will influence whether officers send it to committee. A number of park users have contacted us about it.

    You can email the planning officer at the address given above in the blog item.

    New Lammas Lands Defence Committee has submitted a detailed objection which is here: http://tinyurl.com/nlldc-obabb

    As NLLDC says:
    "The application ... should only be re-submitted with a comprehensive Environmental Statement. This has been required of the ODA elsewhere for short-term and temporary events, e.g. Greenwich Park, and Leyton Marshes should be treated at least equally, particularly as the site is within a Regional Park and very close to an extensive Nature Reserve. The views of Natural England should also be sought, particularly with regard to the impact of lighting."

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  8. Sorry, that's Monday 2nd January, not Tuesday. Seasonal disorientation.

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  9. I think there should be facilities for changing room for the cricketers basketball and the Tennis, also can there be couple of cricket nets for the criceters so that they dont need to practise on the main cricket square in the summer. There should also be some play area for the children living near Millfield road and Watisfiled road, taking in to consideration of safety of children crossing main Lea Bridg road.

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  10. There is already a very good refurbished childrens playground on Millfields which my kids love. We actually live on Millfields Road and safety is not an issue as there are 3 sets of pedestrian lights between the roundabout and bridge on leabridge Road. There is also a lovely walk along the river under the bridge for parents and kids.

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  11. The most recent submission on this talks about '..a very good refurbished childrens playground on Millfields..' Could someone please let me know where this is because I have been unable to find such a thing since my first child was born 11 years ago. I think they must be talking about some other park e.g. Clissold, which has just had another upgrade costing hundreds of thousands.
    On the issue of cricket facilities - Could someone put this on the agenda for the next MUG meeting - if the cricketers want nets, can we allocate funds for this?

    By: Tony Lowe - mralowe@yahoo.com

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  12. @ Tony Just seen your submission - yes, it does exist. There is a good kids playground in Millfields close to Casimir Road. It is comparatively large, well equipped and well used.
    I think the one you refer to in Clissold is exceptional for any London borough. It was part of a major project for Clissold underpinned by lottery funding which in its execution occasionally proved detrimental to certain wildlife (ie deer, rabbits etc. ... well documented) and the existing biodiversity of the park and indeed significantly lined the pockets of private contractors....
    As a parent, I do understand your desire to have what you perceive as best for your children in terms of play facilities.
    The topic of this thread is however, The Olympic Bid to Occupy Leyton Marshes and we really need to be very vigilant about encroachment on our diminishing green spaces.

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    Replies
    1. The playground near Casimir Road is the one which the Millfields User Group is palnning to upgrade - so no encroachment on this issue. It has gained the odd small piece of equipment over the last ten years, but could never be described as 'refurbished'. Most of it is decades old, and we even lost a sandpit around the largest climbing frame, because the council was not prepared to maintain it properly.

      Tony Lowe mralowe@yahoo.com

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  13. Tony,
    "On the issue of cricket facilities - Could someone put this on the agenda for the next MUG meeting - if the cricketers want nets, can we allocate funds for this?"
    We can't sensibly fit this in the next meeting but it's something to pick up in 2012. Decent facilities for our 2 good cricket teams was something that got raised a lot in the park masterplan meetings in 2009-2010. At league matches, I'm told, they have to use toilets in team members' houses. It's infuriating that millions are being spent on new pitches on Hackney Marshes and not a penny going to the beautiful Millfields site.

    Tim

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