Vauxhall Gyratory System and Bus Station update

Following a meeting at the Kennington, Oval & Vauxhall Forum we wanted to update you on plans for the Vauxhall Gyratory & Bus Station.

As far as Lambeth Labour councillors are concerned, all viable options for transforming the Vauxhall gyratory are open, and we are open to hearing people's ideas.

Currently TfL are testing options to see if they will work - the two previously circulated to KOV, and they are now exploring a third which introduces two way working and preserves the central bus station function.

There is still a huge amount of work to be done before the Autumn in working through these options and we welcome and will be seeking people's views in the meantime. And just to underline, TfL and Lambeth are committed to full and genuine consultation before any decision is made.

We aren't wedded to the creation of a high street exactly as sketched out in the Vauxhall Supplementary Development Plan. We are committed to creating a district centre for Vauxhall which ties together the area, and provides quality public space, shops and restaurants. As mentioned above, there will be further discussion with residents, businesses and commuters about their priorities and how best they see this happening prior to consultation that TfL and Lambeth will be undertaking the Autumn.  The exact form of the Vauxhall district centre will be determined by decisions which are made on the gyratory and the bus station.

Your Priorities for Kennington & Vauxhall 2014-18

As you will be aware there will be local elections next May. As a result all councillors are looking at what we said we would do over the past four years and what we want to do over the coming four years.

We therefore wanted to take this opportunity to discover what your priorities are for Kennington & Vauxhall over 2014-18. It can be as small as fixing a pothole in a pavement or as big as the level of council tax you would like to see.

All ideas are welcome! To give you an idea, please see the manifesto Steve, Lorna and Mark stood on in 2010. Do you think we kept all our promises? Is there anything we could have done better?

If you can respond by emailing Steve before the end of the year that would be helpful. Steve, Lorna and Mark will then take your suggestions to council officers and our new candidates David, Chris and Joanne to see how we can make them a reality.

Pictured: Mark, Lorna and Steve campaigning in 2010 with local resident Jon

Vauxhall footbridge to close temporarily - and possibly permanently?

Transport for London are applying for a temporary footbridge closure notice in order to build the Cycle Superhighway Route 5 Inner Section.

As part of Cycle Superhighway Route 5 Inner Section TfL are considering the permanent removal of this footbridge, therefore this closure will be accompanied by a monitoring study to asses the impacts of closure and alternative routing of pedestrians in the area.

At present exact dates are still to be confirmed, however the bridge will be closed for approximately 10 days during the period 1 October 2013 – 31 March 2014.

If you have views about the temporary or permanent closure please let us know.

Major improvements to Vauxhall tube starting next year

Transport for London have let us know about their plans for major station upgrade works at Vauxhall station.

The upgrade of Vauxhall Tube station will provide both an increase in capacity and make the station step-free.  This upgrade will also support wider growth and regeneration of the area.  The station will remain open throughout the works, though there might be some changes to the customer routes into and through the station.

The works will begin in early 2014 and is expected to be completed by late 2015.  It is planned that the work site outside the station will be established at the end of this year.

As part of the upgrade, the ticket hall will be reconfigured in order to provide additional ticket gates. The current staggered gateline will also be straightened helping customers make their way through the station more easily.  The new gates will include wide-aisle gates allowing disabled passengers and those with buggies or heavy luggage to travel more easily as well as reducing congestion within the station. 

The subways and stairways that link the station will be completely refurbished and a lift will be installed between the ticket hall and platforms.  This, combined with the existing lift from the bus station to the Tube ticket hall, will deliver step-free access from street level to Victoria line trains.

During these works, there may be some noise generated by deliveries and heavy machinery. TfL say they will do their absolute best to minimise any disruption and noise, particularly when works take place at night.

All work will be governed by an environmental plan which will be approved by the local authority (London Borough of Lambeth) in accordance with current Section 61 regulations, which impose a limit on noise.

Construction will take place behind hoardings which will keep the works and waste separate from the public areas of the station. Materials will be disposed of in accordance with the waste management plan which will comply with current legislation and be approved by London Borough of Lambeth. All public areas will be maintained in a clean state prior to, during and on completion of each day’s activities.

£36 million modernisation of Vauxhall tube starting this year

A contractor has now been appointed for a £36m modernisation of Vauxhall station over the next few years, increasing capacity and improving accessibility.

While work takes place to provide customers with step-free access, the station will remain open.

To create more space for the expected 40 per cent increase in people using the station over the next few years, the ticket hall will be completely reconfigured.

The new layout will see more ticket gates and wide-aisle gates, allowing disabled passengers and those with buggies or heavy luggage to travel more easily, as well as reducing congestion.

The station's subways and stairways will also be refurbished, and a lift installed between the ticket hall and Underground platforms.

Along with the existing lift between the bus station and Tube ticket hall, this will provide step-free access to the Victoria line platforms.

The improvement work is part of TfL's wider plans to transform the Vauxhall Nine Elms Battersea area to support economic growth, including around 25,000 new jobs and 16,000 new homes.

The cost of the work has been reduced by more than £9m, from £45m to £36m, owing to the more cost-effective construction methods.

London Underground has awarded the contract to Bechtel Ltd.

Construction will start next year and is expected to finish in late 2015.

Update on Lambeth's plans for Vauxhall Bus Station

Recently the Vauxhall Society has been trying to promote the setting up of the ‘Friends of Vauxhall Bus Station’, claiming that Lambeth Council is intent on demolishing the bus station and scattering the bus stops around the gyratory system.

Lambeth Labour councillors believe that setting up the ‘Friends of Vauxhall Bus Station’ is premature because as yet there is no finalised plan for the bus station for people to object to. Lambeth Council and Transport for London are currently working up a comprehensive plan for the remodelling of Vauxhall Cross, which should be consulted on this summer. There will be a full consultation and plenty of opportunity for all residents, businesses and travellers to express their views once there is a proposal to respond to.

Lambeth absolutely does not want to scatter bus stops around the Vauxhall Gyratory system. Any changes to the bus station need to maintain the convenience of being able to interchange between buses easily and quickly.

What Lambeth does want to do is examine whether there’s a better way of laying out the current bus station area – which maintains the convenience of the bus interchange but makes the area more pleasant for pedestrians, more economically and culturally vibrant, more green, and with more direct routes for buses to follow (so they don’t have to circle the gyratory before getting to the bus stop). We think removing the existing bus station canopy and creating a two way ‘high street’ reserved for buses might be the best way of doing this – but we are testing this in our detailed discussions with TfL before coming to any conclusions.

See the entries to the Vauxhall Missing Link Competition

Vauxhall Business Improvement District - Vauxhall One - have organised a competition for architects to imagine the future for Vauxhall - 'the missing link between the American Embassy and the South Bank'.

You can view the entries pinned up around Vauxhall, at the Garden Museum, and on this website.

Get your Vauxhall Perk Card today

Vauxhall businesses have launched their 'Perk Card', entitling residents and workers in our area to discounts from local businesses.

Go to www.vauxhallvillage.com  to apply for your card today!

Shameless developer tries to slash affordable housing from 31% to 0% at Vauxhall Sky Gardens

As your local Labour councillors we want your help to oppose the scrapping of 75 affordable homes in the Vauxhall Sky Gardens development, preventing local residents who will otherwise struggle to get on the housing ladder to live here in Vauxhall.

We know that local people place a great value on living in mixed communities, with good quality housing that is accessible to people of all income levels. It is vital that we have that balance in new developments too, which is why Lambeth Council has such a tough planning policy that means that they must include as much affordable housing as can be afforded.

The developer of Vauxhall Sky Gardens originally agreed to provide 75 affordable housing units, and are now trying to shirk their responsibility by removing all the affordable housing. We want to make it clear to big developers, both now and in the future, that we won't stand by and let them shirk their responsibility to preserve mixed communities.

Lambeth's planning applications committee has the power to reject the developers attempt to scrap all of the affordable housing in Vauxhall Sky Gardens, backed by the Council's tough policy on affordable housing, but it is important that we help them by showing that the community would be right behind them. So we want as many local people as possible to make their voices heard by registering their opposition to the developers' attempt to shirk their responsibilities, and demand that they reinstate the affordable housing quota.

If you support our campaign then please visit the Lambeth Planning Website and register to make your objection or alternatively write your objection to planning applications using the reference 13/00686/S106, and send it to Lambeth Planning, Phoenix House, 10 Wandsworth Road, London, SW8 2LL.

Funding the Northern Line Extension

After years of consultations and negotiations there is now agreement between the Government, Mayor of London, Lambeth Council and Wandsworth Council on how the Northern Line Extension should be funded, and we are near the point when Transport for London will start the planning process for the Northern Line Extension.

When the Northern Line Extension was first identified as the preferred transport solution, we as councillors shared the concern of residents that Lambeth shouldn't be paying for it at the expense of Lambeth residents. We have negotiated down Lambeth's contribution to the NLE from 62% to 15% of the monies due from the private developers. This is a huge win for Lambeth and one your Labour councillors have pushed for from the start.

More detail is outlined below but the next step for us all is to work out how we as a community decide how the remaining developer money is used to support the needs of existing communities alongside measures to mitigate the various developments.


Funding the Northern Line Extension

• The Government will set up an Enterprise Zone – where business rates from the new businesses created as part of the Vauxhall- Nine Elms- Battersea developments will be collected over the next 25 years to pay for the NLE. The only sites in Lambeth in the Enterprise Zone will be the Wandsworth Road Sainsbury’s site and the Vauxhall Square site (immediately south of Vauxhall Cross, bordered by Parry Street, Wandsworth Road and Bondway). All the other sites in the EZ will be in Wandsworth.
• Funding from the private developers will also contribute to the NLE. This is currently collected through Section 106, in the future this will be collected through the Community Infrastructure Levy. Current estimated development income for Lambeth Council will total £46m, of which the GLA is seeking agreement that £7.3m be allocated to contribute towards the cost of the NLE. This is just 15% of the income we will collect from developers. The rest will be used to pay for the other infrastructure needed in Vauxhall, such as sorting out the Vauxhall Cross gyratory, improved public space and school places. By contrast, the developers of Battersea Power Station will contribute £203m to the NLE.
• The Government in underwriting the cost of the project, and the risk will lie with the Greater London Authority. Neither Lambeth nor Wandsworth will shoulder any risk. TfL has also committed to taking all of the risk on any increase in costs that may occur in relation to other transport infrastructure over and above what is already planned.

Lambeth Cabinet on 4 March

A paper is being heard by the Cabinet on 4 March. The recommendations are:

•  that the noise level resulting from trains does not exceed 35dB (fast) and that mitigation measures are explored to reduce the noise level as far as  possible below that level 
• that the Council is satisfied that all other impacts of the NLE are minimised  and that this is clearly set out and demonstrated by the documents included in the Transport Works Act Order submission
• that the shafts and any associated buildings at Kennington Green and Kennington Park are designed to the highest standard, to be determined by the Council, and that mitigation measures to minimise the impacts of noise and air pollution are provided 
• that the proposed station at Nine Elms and the public realm surrounding it are designed to the highest quality, to be determined by the Council
• agreement between the Council and TfL on a satisfactory package of other strategic transport improvements, including improved/new bus services, that ensures the NLE is part of an overall strategic transport solution for the VNEB Opportunity Area 
• that the transformational change to the public realm and the bus station be progressed leading to the creation of a new district centre and the removal of the Vauxhall Gyratory wherever possible and to the satisfaction of the Council.
• That the Enterprise Zone as it relates to Lambeth is limited to the developments know as Vauxhall Square (Planning Ref 11/04428/FUL) and the redevelopment of the existing Sainsbury store  on Wandsworth Road, (Planning Ref 11/02326OUT), as defined by the relevant planning permissions that the Planning Application Committee have approved, subject to S106 Agreements.
• That all efforts be made to reduce the potential infrastructure funding gap by working with existing strategic partners who have a responsibility to provide infrastructure for the new population.

Benefits for Lambeth

• 3,500 new homes and 8,000 new jobs created in Lambeth. Many thousands more jobs on the Wandsworth side available for Lambeth residents to apply for.
• A new tube station at Nine Elms which will dramatically improve transport connections around Wandsworth Road.
• Pressure taken off Vauxhall tube station, as passengers in Nine Elms and Battersea will not add to the demands on Vauxhall and the Victoria line.
• A fast, direct new tube connection from Kennington to the jobs, shops and services being developed at Battersea Power Station.
• As new buildings are erected, developers will have to pay £46m to Lambeth. Only £7.3m of that extra money will go to the Northern line. The rest will go to other projects in Lambeth, such as the sorting out the Vauxhall Gyratory System.
• With all the new businesses in the area Lambeth will get more income from the business rates. Lambeth will keep all this extra money.
• Only Sainsbury’s on Wandsworth Road and the Vauxhall Square development will be in the new Enterprise Zone, meaning Lambeth will give 70% of the extra business rates to Government.

Lambeth’s Overview & Scrutiny committee on 20 March

The committee that Stephen and Mark are both members of will consider the regeneration of Vauxhall and the Northern Line Extension. It is a public meeting so you are welcome to attend. We will also be holding the meeting at the Wheatsheaf Hall, South Lambeth Road, SW8 2UP, in order to hopefully make it easier for those residents most affected to get to.


Our view

Transport experts believe that the Northern Line Extension is the best way to improve transport links and regenerate the Vauxhall- Nine Elms- Battersea riverfront. No other transport solution will provide the capacity that will be needed to make the area a success.

It will cost money, but we think out of a budget of £1bn, asking Lambeth to pay £7.3m from the money developers give us and 70% of the extra business rates that businesses give us on only two sites is a great deal!

Some groups who are against the Northern line Extension will tell you that this money could be better spent on Lambeth residents and not on the Northern Line Extension. But just think about this for a minute. Without the Northern Line Extension, Battersea Power Station would not be developed. A lot of other sites in the area would not be developed, as transport will be overwhelmed. We would not get the all of the £46m from developers in Vauxhall, as there would not be a comprehensive transport solution to support all of the planned development. We would not get all of the extra business rates from the new businesses. We would not get all of the 3,500 new homes and 8,000 new jobs.

So being against the Northern Line Extension does not mean saving Lambeth £7.3m. It means costing us millions of pounds, thousands of homes, thousands of jobs and a once in a lifetime opportunity to redevelop Vauxhall- Nine Elms- Battersea.

Nando's for Vauxhall

Nando's have submitted licensing and planning applications to turn the empty arch next to the pedestrian foot tunnel at Vauxhall station into a restaurant.


The planning applications are:

12/04676/FUL - Alterations to the rear and side elevations to install two louvred vents and an extract duct, the installation of a louvred vent within the fenestration to the front elevation and the installation of two safety barriers adjacent to side elevation.

12/04678/FUL - Installation of a new shopfront and a retractable shutter.

12/04679/ADV - Display of 2 no. fascia signs, 2 no. projecting signs and and 1 no. menu box.

To view full details visit the planning database and search using the reference numbers.


The licensing application is:

Premises Address: Nando's - Arch 56 South Lambeth Road

Activities/times requested:

Late Night Refreshment
Monday - Sunday   23:00  - 00:00
From the end of permitted hours on New Year's Eve until 0200 hours on New Year's Day

Supply of Alcohol
Monday - Sunday   11:00  - 00:00
From the end of permitted hours on New Year's Eve until 0200 hours on New Year's Day

Opening Hours (Non-standard & Seasonal)
From the end of permitted hours on New Year's Eve until 0200 hours on New Year's Day

Deadline for representations: 14 March 2013

Read our guide to licensing before sending representations to licensing@lambeth.gov.uk

Licensing: 24 hours for Texaco garage?

The Texaco Garage on Kennington Road (in front of Brittany Point and Prichard House) has applied for a 24 hour alcohol licence.

Premises Address: Kennington Service Station - Petrol Station, 212 Kennington Road, London

Proposed extension of hours –
Supply of Alcohol
Monday - Sunday   00:00  - 00:00

Removal of the following condition –
Restriction in hours for the sale of alcohol for consumption off the premises.

Current Licensed Hours
Supply of Alcohol
Monday - Sunday   06:00  - 02:00

Deadline for representations: 8 March 2013


Vauxhall club Union has applied for a Sexual Entertainment venue licence. The other gay clubs in Vauxhall applied for these licences last year to regularise some of their entertainment after a change in the law. You can read the minutes of the committee meeting which made decisions about these licences, and the explanations from venues applying for these licences last year.


Premises Address: Union, Arch 66 Goding Street, London, SE11 5AW

Activities/times requested:

Sex Cinema
Monday - Sunday   00:00  - 00:00

Sexual Entertainment Venue
Monday - Sunday   00:00  - 00:00

Sex Shop
Monday - Sunday   00:00  - 00:00

Propose additional condition
We have a concern that the majority of the council’s standard SEV conditions do not apply as they are aimed at lap dancing clubs and therefore we propose that an additional condition which states “The SEV conditions only apply when SEV type activities are taking place.”

Deadline for representations: 10 March 2013.


Current licensing applications can be viewed on the Council's website.
Please read our guide to licensing before making a representation. 
If you'd like advice from your councillors, please don't hesitate to email us.

Update from Duchy Arms licensing review

On 24 January the Licensing Committee heard an application for a review of the Duchy Arms' licence, after noise complaints. Their original licence allowed them to open till 2am. The Committee imposed amendments and conditions to the licence, which are detailed below. These bring opening hours into line with other pubs close to Kennington Cross, and impose conditions to reduce noise disturbance to local residents. You can read the full minutes of the meeting here.

Amendments

The following regulated entertainment is removed from the premises licence: Indoor Sporting Events, Provision of Facilities for Making Music, and Provision of Facilities for Dancing

The times the licence authorises the carrying out of licensable activities is amended as follows:

Films Monday-Sunday 0700-0000
Supply of Alcohol: Sunday-Wednesday 0700-0000; Thursday-Saturday 0700-0100
Live Music: Monday-Sunday 1100-0000 (unchanged)
Late Night Refreshment: Sunday-Wednesday 2300-0000 and Thursday-Saturday 2300-0100
Music and Dance of Similar Description: Monday-Sunday 0700-0000 (unchanged)
Recorded Music: Monday-Sunday 0700-0000

Conditions

No deliveries are to be made to the premises before 7am and after 11pm

The handling of kegs, bottle disposal and similar items will not take place after 11pm, when the noise generated could cause a nuisance, particularly outside the building

All windows and external doors are to be kept closed at all times save for ingress and egress

The beer garden is not to be used for patrons after 10pm

No music is to be played in the beer garden

Two licensing applications for Vauxhall

There are two current licensing applications for Vauxhall Cross which people can comment on.



Steax and the City
Unit 3, Block D, St George Wharf, SW8 2LE


Activities/times requested:

Recorded Music
Monday - Sunday     08:00 - 23:30

Late Night Refreshment
Monday - Sunday   23:00  - 00:00

Supply of Alcohol
Monday - Sunday   08:00  - 00:00

Hours premises open to the public

Monday - Sunday   08:00  - 00:30

Deadline for comments: 17 January




Travelodge London Vauxhall 
3 Bondway, SW8 1SJ
(currently under construction next to the bus station)

Activities/times requested:

Late Night Refreshment
Monday - Sunday   23:00  - 05:00

Supply of Alcohol
Monday - Sunday   00:00  - 00:00

Deadline for comments: 4 February


Before commenting please read our guide to licensing.

Email comments to licensing@lambeth.gov.uk

Update from this week's KOV neighbourhood forum

Community groups and residents from across Kennington, Oval and Vauxhall were represented at Tuesday's KOV Forum meeting.

There was good news for residents of the Wincott Street area from the West London Mission charity, who own the St Luke's hostel at the corner with Gilbert Road.

Over the past six months the building has been the temporary home to a hostel from Waterloo, and West London Mission acknowledged and apologised for the fact that some of the very challenging residents have caused problems and behaved in an antisocial way. That hostel will be returning to Waterloo in two weeks' time. Over the next few months the West London Mission will be consulting on a future use for the building, which promises to be far less disruptive to residents. Their favoured option is a convalescence centre for homeless people recovering from operations - which should allow them to recover from hospital treatment properly and prevent readmissions to hospitals.

The majority of the meeting was devoted to a presentation on the Vauxhall Supplementary Planning Document - the key planning policy for the future of Vauxhall. The Council is currently consulting on the policy document - the deadline for representations is 26 November. The plan is that the policy should be in place by January, so it can guide planning applications for new developments which are racing forward as part of the VNEB regeneration. The latest version of the SPD received a pretty positive response from people at the meeting - in particular most residents are pleased that the Council has an ambitious plan to transform Vauxhall Cross from a inhospitable gyratory system into a thriving town centre which is pleasant for pedestrians and cyclists.

Vauxhall Street Wardens making their mark

In June Vauxhall One, the new Business Improvement District, in conjunction with Lambeth community safety and the Police, introduced the local Street Warden service for Vauxhall, to reduce crime and anti-social behaviour. They are dressed in distinctive purple uniforms and patrol the central area of Vauxhall.

To find out more about Vauxhall One you can visit their website at:

If you have any questions about the wardens you can contact Chris Law - 07725 960698.

A very successful year for Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens

Yesterday was the AGM of the Friends of Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens - an opportunity for the Friends to look back over a very successful year. Highlights have included:

• Changing the name of the park from Spring Gardens to 'Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens' - a more distinctive and memorable name which directly references the area's 18th and 19th century heritage.
• Paul O'Grady opening the new entrance to the park (pictured), in a ceremony which attracted large amounts of positive coverage.
• The Vauxhall Gardens Estate Residents' & Tenants' Association successfully bidding for over £100000 to refurbish the Glasshouse Walk playground.
• The opening of the Tea House Theatre, and re-opening of the Black Dog pub, which have brought new positive activity to the Glasshouse Walk side of the park.
• The successful ballot to introduce the Vauxhall Business Improvement District, which will see street wardens introduced, railway viaduct tunnels improved, and other improvements in the area funded by local businesses.
• The planning approval given to the Cabinet Gallery, which will bring a prestigious art gallery building to the park.
• The planning approval given to the Basaveshwara statue for Albert Embankment Gardens.
• New trees and bulbs planted by the Friends in the park.  

Things to look forward to over the coming year include:

• Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens being part of the Olympic 'Cultural Corridor' - attracting visitors for the Games.
• Work on the mounds behind the Vauxhall Tavern - to lower them and create a stepped amphitheatre effect.
• Working on plans to transform Goding Street.
• Interest from many organisations about holding more events in the park.
• Investigating the possibility of a mural on the back wall of the Tavern.
• A VGERTA/ Tea House Theatre Diamond Jubilee street party.

In 2006 a survey showed the park was perceived as being the least safe park in Lambeth. Thanks to the hard work of the Friends and the Council, the park is transformed. The new entrance in particular has reduced crime and the fear of crime dramatically. The Friends continue to do an excellent job and deserve the community's full support!

Overwhelming vote of confidence for Vauxhall Business Improvement District

Businesses in Vauxhall have voted overwhelmingly in favour of setting up 'Vauxhall One' - a Business Improvement District. It means that local businessed will pay for a new organisation which will help manage and improve Vauxhall, making a better place for businesses and residents.

The new organisation will invest upwards of £4m in Vauxhall over the next five years. Its four themes are Vauxhall Safe (reducing fear of crime), Vauxhall Change (improving public realm), Vauxhall Day & Night (promoting the area’s shops, hotels, restaurants & clubs) and Vauxhall Together (engaging with the local residential community).

Find out more about Vauxhall One on their website and their Twitter.

Paul O'Grady opens the new Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens entrance!

This evening Paul O'Grady (otherwise known as Lily Savage) came to Vauxhall to open the new entrance to the newly named Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens. Paul was invited as his career began at the Royal Vauxhall Tavern, where this evening's ceremony was held.

Chair of the Friends of Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens Eamonn McMahon thanks Paul O'Grady for coming.

Paul tells the audience about his past life living and working in Vauxhall, and how he is delighted that the history of the Pleasure Gardens is now being celebrated.

Paul opens the new entrance, with Leader of Lambeth Council Steve Reed and MP for Vauxhall Kate Hoey.

Ponies and llamas from Vauxhall City Farm joined the celebration.

The new columns were lit up pink for the occasion.

Cabinet Gallery planning application for Lord Clyde site

The people behind the Cabinet Gallery proposal have just submitted their planning application for the Lord Clyde site on Tyers Street/Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens. They plan to create a pavilion-type building housing a modern art gallery, and have gone to great efforts to consult with local groups like the Friends of Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens. Do take a look at their letter and application and comment if you would like to.

Dear Friend,

We would like to take this opportunity to update you on exciting progress with our proposal for a new gallery at Spring Gardens. It is our wish to come home to Lambeth and re-establish the Cabinet Gallery in the borough at Tyers Street, Vauxhall. Over the past 18 months we have undertaken a comprehensive amount of work, aimed at producing a building to accommodate Cabinet’s activities and sit comfortably with the local environment. The building will be located on the northeast corner of Spring Gardens, Tyers Street, opposite Vauxhall City Farm. The gallery will be arranged over the ground and first floors with three private residential apartments above. There will also be accommodation for artists.

Having consulted widely, and secured the support of local representatives and local community members, as well as the Friends of Spring Gardens, we recently submitted our formal planning application to Lambeth Council. For the application to be successful it will require a clear demonstration of support from local people and we would be extremely grateful if you would write a short email about this by clicking - http://planning.lambeth.gov.uk/publicaccess/tdc/DcApplication/application_detailview.aspx?caseno=LSNETOBO0AY00 For information, the council’s consultation on our application is targeted to end on 26th December.

We are delighted to have the opportunity of establishing our gallery in Vauxhall and want to move ahead as soon as possible. All being well, we hope to have been granted planning permission by early in 2012, commence a ten-month construction next Spring and open the new gallery in Autumn 2013.

We would greatly appreciate you giving your support and would of course be happy to answer any questions you might have.

Yours sincerely,

Charles Asprey

Andrew Wheatley

Martin McGeown

Vauxhall Nine Elms Battersea Open Days

Come and find out more about the largest area of central riverside redevelopment in London:

At Market Towers, 1 Nine Elms Lane, Vauxhall, SW8 5NQ

On Thursday 24 November 2011, 3pm to 8pm and Friday 25 November 2011, 8am to 6pm


What to expect:

· The latest information about the Vauxhall Nine Elms Battersea (VNEB) redevelopments.

· An update on the Northern line extension that will link the whole area to the tube network.

· A chance to know more about proposed improvements for pedestrians, cyclists and local public transport users.

· Information about planned improvements to existing streets and a new linear park.

· A 3D model of the whole VNEB area.

· An opportunity to discuss proposals with the VNEB strategy board.


For more information visit: www.lambeth.gov.uk/vneb or www.wandsworth.gov.uk/nineelms