Residents Plan Protest at Borough Regeneration Conference
Opponents of Tesco/Homebase scheme believe plan will be decided by Minister
The Holiday Inn Brentford Lock where the conference is taking place
Resident groups opposed to over-development in the borough of Hounslow are planning a protest at a major conference in Brentford.
Hounslow Regeneration & Recovery Conference, which is being organised by Hounslow Chamber of Commerce in collaboration with Hounslow Council, takes place on Friday, 23 July, 2-8 pm, at the Holiday Inn, Brentford.
Campaign groups including the Osterley and Wyke Green Residents’ Association (OWGRA) intend to picket the event which will hear presentations from numerous developers, including Berkeley Group who are responsible for the massive Tesco/Homebase development. During the evening drinks reception, delegates will hear from the Leader of the Council (Steve Curran) and the Chief Executive (Niall Bolger).
OWGRA says in its newsletter to members, “We feel this will be an excellent opportunity for OWGRA and the communities of Hounslow to express their dissatisfaction with developers. their cosy relationship with the Council, ruining our low-rise suburbs with unsightly tower blocks and unsuitably small flats, instead of meeting the dire need for family homes. We thought we could do this by demonstrating outside the venue throughout the duration of the meeting. The venue is well located with much passing traffic along the London Road. We are in the process of getting some placards professionally produced.”
The plan is to have a peaceful presence outside throughout the meeting, and a bigger gathering from 6 pm.
The protest will come at a time when it appears that the application for the Tesco/Homebase project is in limbo. It was approved by Hounslow Council’s planning committee 12 weeks ago and, in anticipation of the documentation being sent promptly to the Mayor of London for his approval, OWGRA quickly organised a petition and delivered it (with 4,332 signatures gathered in just over 2 weeks). In addition a 3D model of the developments was sent to City Hall and Nick Rogers the new London Assembly member on 12 May.
However, it is understood that the documentation has still not been sent to the Mayor, and OWGRA says, despite asking Hounslow Planners when the documentation will be sent, the only reply it gets is ‘soon’. It is thought possible that the departure of a planning officer who was dealing with the application has contributed to the delay. Once the Mayor receives the application he has 2 weeks to decide whether to approve it or not. OWGRA believe that after that the application will almost certainly go to the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities & Local Government for his decision.
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July 9, 2021
