When the residents of Newton Street were confronted by the architects' plans for a redevelopment of Aviation House we were horrified. A huge, looming fortress of a building with supermarket, casino and the inevitable procession of sixteen-wheel trucks lumbering down Newton Street was simply unacceptable. For the first time in many years I, and others like me, were dragged willy-nilly into the hurly-burly of local planning politics. It soon became apparent that planning applications were made and decided on about the same level of rationality as that which applied to a Christmas pantomime: "Yes I will", "No you wont", "Yes I will". The architects, it would seem, propose a building which has many unacceptable features, as they know that if the plans are sufficiently awful, the whole process can be held to ransom by the threat of an appeal to the Planning Inspectorate, making a mockery of the planning procedure in general and the likelihood that yet another truly awful building disfigures our urban landscape for at least half a century. Fortunately for the residents of Newton Street, our local councillor and Camden's planning officer were also well aware of the tactics and were of immense help to us. A short, sharp campaign which involved several public meetings, articles in the local press and a letter to every single councillor on the planning committee, seems to have been effective. The plans have been scaled back and more amendments are awaited. While the residents are still concerned about disturbance from traffic, the areas of argument will eventually be subject to compromise. Some of us want the proportion of "social housing" in the project increased. The servicing of the supermarket is still a cause for concern, so it is essential that Sainsbury's stick to their undertaking to use only small lorries and only to work during business hours. The question still remains as to whether the increase in traffic and overall hullabaloo generated by a restaurant and a large residential complex will be acceptable and whether, given the nature of Covent Garden and its surroundings when the supermarket opens for 24 hour trading (which we expect is inevitable over the course of time), the residents are suddenly less important than the lorries. Factors which have not been considered, like whether the increasing "standardisation" of Covent Garden (supermarkets, chain restaurants, chain stores etc) will kill off its appeal to the all important tourist trade; whether London really needs or can support yet another huge theme-restaurant in a deconsecrated church or disused bank-vault have obviously not been given enough weight. I personally am left with the over-riding impression that, given the absurdity of the original proposal and the quickness with which the alternative "reasonable" proposal was produced, the greatest service the new Labour government could do to our inner city environment is to undertake a major revision of the planning procedures. Somehow we need to be able to save those pockets of individuality and excellence like Covent Garden that exist in our inner cities from the inevitable march of British High Street blandness. If Covent Garden simply becomes another Oxford Street or Arndale Centre with different people working in the shops and offices, then its decline and death as a tourist attraction are inevitable.

 

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