New West Norwood Fire Station Plan in danger
The London Fire Brigade has officially agreed to spend a whopping £7.1 million of taxpayers money plus up to £900,000 in professional fees on demolishing and replacing West Norwood Fire Station, which was built in 1917. The plan involves a complete rebuild following a government decision to list the facade of the front of the existing building for heritage reasons. The listing decision was agreed by the Labour MP for Dulwich and West Norwood in 2005 when she was the secretary of state.Lambeth Conservative Group Leader Councillor John Whelan comments: "News of progress on the new fire station is welcome, but not the extra costs. Our local MP has cost the taxpayer millions of extra pounds, delayed the new fire station by several years, and is potentially putting lives at risk. Given the heritage decision she made, there is still no certainty it will be agreed, so even more money could go down the drain before it is sold off as a wine bar. Only the Conservative members of the fire authority are taking a risk-based approach, but they are between a rock and a hard place because of Labour recklessness."
The paper (and supporting documents) agreed by the fire authority on Thursday 20th March anticipates that Labour-dominated Lambeth Planning Committee will REFUSE the application and so money has been set aside to take it to the Secretary of State on appeal - the legal fees alone could be £350,000 - with the rest of the professional fees for design. In the unlikely event that Lambeth Labour Planning members agree to the demolition, the Secretary of State is likely to review the decision costing even more money.
Various partial rebuild options were considered, but rejected as impractical and the fire authority says no other sites can be found. The fire authority says it will take at least 26 months to complete the project. The Secretary of State must have "good reason" to agree to demolition, especially as the listing decision is so recent. However, one such consideration is that the terrorist attacks on London in 2005, which have changed the perception of risk to London as a whole, took place three months AFTER the English Heritage listing decision.
Labels: John Whelan, Labour Lambeth, London Fire Brigade, Planning, Thurlow Park ward, West Norwood Fire Station
posted by Cllr John Whelan on Tuesday, March 25, 2008
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