Guest post by Nigel Kahn
On Tuesday evening I attended a public consultation exhibition in regards to the Boleyn Ground redevelopment. Held in the Church hall across the road from the West Ham Supporters club in Castle Street we were shown various plans outlining the submitted plans by architects on behalf of the developers, Galliard group, present on the night were members of the architectural team, developers and the company tasked with Marketing the development, who were able to answer any questions that you may care to answer.
Perhaps as a sure sign that I am finally coming to terms with the move was in a way enlightening and informative. For all the pictures that you see the best way to get a better understanding of what is being proposed was the scale model that was in the centre of the Hall, showing in 3d the size of the buildings and layout of the roads and seeing how it all sits within what is currently sitting there.
The centre of attraction for West Ham fans is that through the middle of the development will be a Piazza, not a word I ever thought I’d see in regards Upton Park. The entrance to the Piazza will be roughly where the John Lyall Gates are and will run all the way through to Castle Street. Sitting in the exact spot of where the current pitch centre spot is will be a Statue that will be called ‘The Kick Off’ It is likely to be a football or could be two players actually kicking off. Also dotted along this central route will be other statues of Iron legends with special dates in the clubs history marked out among the paving.
They also plan to put lights in the floor that light up at evening the original touchlines of the pitch, which from the Piazza may not look special but if viewed from above could be a nice touch. Personally I would like to have seen the pitch area being left completely clear of buildings, two blocks are proposed one to the north and one to the south of the centre circle each unit housing 44 apartments. So with the removal of 88 of the flats or just 10% of the development, the pitch could have been kept as a park, a place for kids to play football and possibly dream the dreams we all did as kids of being on the pitch playing.
The plan is to build around 880 apartments, flats & houses, with 6% allocated as shared ownership. Underground car parking will be available, only for 350 cars though, but amazingly the plan is for over 1,200 bicycle bays. Quite how they plan to restrict car ownership amongst the residents remains to be seen but I suppose that is down to those that live on and around the development. Castle street is being re-opened up all the way from Green Street to Priory Road, as it used to be for many years until the Boleyn ground was built up.
Shops will be part of the Development as well but no major chain will be allowed to take a unit to try and protect Queens Road Market. The idea, as explained to me, is that the shops should complement the market not detract or take customers away.A nursery, teacher training building and a new Library to replace the existing one further down the road are all things considered, it looks impressive, even to me who believes that this development should never have seen the light of day.
The problem with the plans is that they never live up to the original look, and never has it seemed take into consideration the local residents who will live on the edge. Most of the handful of people in the hall at the time I was there were local residents, and those I heard were not impressed with the view. Parking as I highlighted was one concern, especially the lack of it, as from their point of view they will only find somewhere else to park rather than not have a car. Considering the impact of match day traffic was one of the many reasons for not expanding the Boleyn, it seems with the club moving that may be an issue that locals may have to still face, except rather than just 24 days of the year, now 365 days.
Two other Reasons for the non-expansion of the Boleyn ground, or rather the East stand, were the Bus Garage and that any new stand would block the light of the flats behind it. As we know the bus garage shut years ago so that reason has gone, and as for the light problem, it is proposed that two blocks of flats will be built along Priory Road in the space vacated by the East Stand, these blocks will be eleven stories high, the flats behind are only nine, the current East Stand is according to the developer’s own plans four to six. Make of that what you will but I think it does raise questions of the way the club gave out information as to why they needed to move.
As someone who still believes the move is wrong, for the fans and the club, seeing what it will become will take a lot of getting used to, looking at it as a West Ham fan, the fact the site will still reflect a little of the ground that was once there for 112 years was a positive, as someone who was born and brought up in the area, this development does nothing for the local community.
Shared ownership is not affordable housing, 95% of the development will be privately owned, with the prices these flats will command, looking at other local developments, they will be out of reach of the majority of young people living in the area, and when rented out the rent rates locally are crippling. As a comparison, in a Canning Town new development two bed apartments are £1,500 a month. This of course is out of the clubs hands and is more a social problem than a football problem, but it still leaves a bad taste in the mouth of many. Outside the Hall, local action group the friends of Queens market were leafleting, highlighted the lack of affordable housing in the area and protesting against another piece of local land being taken away and used for profit rather than the community the local council claims it serves. They have a website for information and a petition which you can sign, go to www.friendsofqueensmarket.org.uk for more information.
As the end of the Boleyn Ground gets nearer I’m sure more will come out into the public domain in regards the development and that in turn may highlight some of the information the club used to persuade fans that we had no choice to move. Then and only then will we know the truth.
