Nick Russell and the local Lib Dems saved the Kentish Town Baths, and are now working to save the old Polytechnic Assembly Hall opposite.

Hundreds of local residents have backed my petition against the scheme to knock down the historic 1929 building. I’ve told Camden Council’s officials that they’d be wrong to ignore the fact that the former Polytechnic Asssembly Hall is a much-loved landmark.

I told officers they are bound by planning law to protect local heritage buildings that are valued by communities, whether they are listed or not. I wrote: “Our petition provides powerful evidence that this building is dear to the local community, both because of its historical connotations and its contribution to the local townscape. A number have cherished memories of attending the old Polytechnic.”

I won’t let the developers get away with dismissing that building as being of no value. If local residents say they value it, Camden Council should sit up and listen to them.

The council will now consider the objections for two or three months before the application goes to councillors for a decision. I am campaigning to become a strong voice for Kentish Town in the by-election that’s on. I plan to be at the committee to make sure residents’ views are not ignored.

My objection to the plans for the Pizza Express building

Nick Russell, Kentish Town campaigner

Nick Russell is campaigning against plans that would harm our area.

The local Lib Dem team and I are fighting the plans which the developers have again submitted to Camden Council. The building that’s rented by Pizza Express is one of Kentish Town’s gems, and is close to other local landmarks like the Kentish Town Baths and Una House , as well as the 1929 Polytechnic building it is part of.

These plans for 14 flats are ugly and bulky and do not fit in with Kentish Town’s special character. They also fail to provide any affordable housing, and so I am backing residents fighting the plans with a petition I’ll take to the council to show the strength of feeling on the issue.

Developers should not be allowed to pull down much loved buildings, certainly when they have not asked local people what they want or tried to meet local housing needs.

JOIN MY CAMPAIGN. You can sign the petition against these plans by clicking here. Thank you.

Nick Russell, campaigning for Kentish Town.

Will the savings to be made from shared salaries outweigh the non-financial costs of such a move?

It is in times of recession that senior management teams really earn their salaries.  They have to find ways to deliver more with less, have to evaluate services carefully and have to recommend tough decisions to their Boards.  Any manager can find ways to spend money when it is plentiful – as Fred the Shred showed at RBS.  It takes wiser executives to save the most money with the least pain – and to maintain staff morale and motivation through the lean period.

Camden’s Senior Officers face a challenging period ahead, developing and assessing policy alternatives for the cabinet.  Sacred Cows will have to be slaughtered.  And when changes have been agreed, they will have to be implemented well in order to deliver the promised savings and maintain service standards.

The council will have to deliver more for less. Nick visiting the Kentish Town Baths, a major project undertaken when Camden was Lib Dem led.

It is highly questionable whether this is a good time to start sharing our senior officers’ time with another borough facing the same issues.  You might say that this is no time to have their work cut, because they will have their work cut out.

Labour’s Cllr Blackwell has said that sharing executives is an enabler of larger savings through shared services.  Shared Services could deliver valuable benefits but the key to their success is effective implementation, requiring more executive attention and expertise, not less.

We face a time of anxiety for Camden residents too.  Many of them already think that the council suffers from a remote and impersonal bureaucracy that does not communicate.  Forcing the senior executives to spend half their time in another borough can only make this problem worse and increase residents’ concern.

There is an argument that appointing Moira Gibb as Islington’s CEO is good for Islington.  She is highly experienced in managing an inner London borough and has no re-location problems.  They can save on their recruitment costs as well.  But there is no benefit for Camden unless we pay much less than half her salary for half her time.

Ms Gibb will have to invest a lot of time in familiarising herself with Islington, its particular circumstances and its team.  It is lower rated than Camden, so there is more improvement needed, even before cuts are considered.  How will she be able to lead the fundamental reappraisal of Camden’s services and costs if she is trying to take on the leadership of Islington as well?

At the very least, the Labour Cabinet must be open with its shareholders (the residents) about what savings are on offer, what deal has been negotiated with Islington, who is going to tackle the strategic issues that Ms Gibb no longer has time for, and what the non-financial costs will be that will offset any financial savings.

Nick Russell, campaigning for Kentish Town

Originally printed in The Camden New Journal.

The Kentish Town Baths, saved from the threat of demolition, are proving a hit with residents.

I’m pleased that so many people are enjoying the baths.  They really have been a huge success and the queue often stretches out of the door on a Saturday morning.

My Lib Dem colleague Flick Rea, who made the restoration work happen as Camden’s Executive Member for Culture, said: “That tens of thousands of people have rushed to use the baths shows that the spectacular refurbishment was worth every single penny.  It’s absolutely wonderful to see this building back where it belongs at the heart of the community in Kentish Town.

“For many years Labour stood back while this beautiful piece of Camden’s heritage became run down: at one point they even wanted to have it demolished.  I’m very proud that the Liberal Democrats stepped in to save the Baths.  It was the right decision, and leaves a lasting legacy to the borough.

“I hope thousands more will visit the baths and enjoy the great facilities there for years and years to come.”

It’s not that often that major projects such as this are delivered on time, on budget and go on to attract huge visitor numbers.  Well done to Flick, and to all the Camden officers who worked so hard to make this happen.

Nick Russell, campaigning for Kentish Town

Rahel, Jill and Matt celebrate their win

Last night, in the first by-election since the General Election, our colleagues Jill, Matt and Rahel were elected in Haverstock ward. The election was postponed following the sad loss of Lib Dem councillor Syed Hoque.

They have a great campaigning record on projects like Talacre Gardens, Kentish Town Baths and extra policing down in Camden town so it is good news to have them back on the Council.

The full results are below and you can read coverage in the Camden New Journal by clicking here.

Rahel Bokth (Liberal Democrats) 1291
Tom Copley (Labour) 1202
Sabrina Francis (Labour) 1257
Jill Fraser (Liberal Democrats) 1462
Tim Frost (Conservative) 250
Paul Grader (Green) 240
Jane Adele Lawrie (Green) 246
Robert Ricketts (Conservative) 236
Matt Sanders (Liberal Democrats) 1326
Joan Stally (Conservative) 259
Sean Thompson (Green) 181
Joynal Uddin (Labour) 1114

Turnout 36.23%

Duly elected: Jill Fraser, Matt Sanders, Rahal Bokth

On Monday night coming back from campaigning in the neighbouring ward of Haverstock I stopped to talk to a guy from Network Rail removing the signs from the bridge. Finally, after years, it looks like the bridge is finally being cleaned up! A good result for local residents who have battled for years on this.

Regis Road bridge before the signs were removed.

Abdiwali collecting petition signatures

The current proposal is for 82 weekends of closures.  The experience of residents and traders along the Jubilee Line is that weekend closures have had a terrible impact on their lives and businesses.

We all want the Northern Line upgraded – it’s long overdue.  And we know it will have to cause some inconvenience.  But users and the community still deserve to to be involved in the decisions about how it is done.

For example, why not shut the line for August when lots of users are on holiday, and use that time to work 24/7 in order to make big progress without stopping and starting?

Will the Mayor of London and TfL ensure that Thameslink is not shut at the same time as the Northern Line?  Will they instruct First Capital Connect to make more trains stop at Kentish Town (at least as many as at W Hampstead, say), so that passengers can quickly get to Kings Cross and change lines there?

Will they ensure they only close part of the line at a time, so that as much as possible is open?  Will TfL restrict weekend parking on the routes of Replacement Buses so that they can keep moving – a big problem for the Jubilee buses?

Right now it seems that Tube Lines are doing what suits them best.  We say that users and local communities should have a big say in how to minimise the disruption, and are seeking meetings with the Mayor and TfL to fight for that.

singing together

180 youngsters were singing their hearts out – often with matching gestures – and the audience enjoyed it all as almost a much as the kids.

Having venues like the Roundhouse to use for such events is one of the joys of Camden. It is such an exciting space and makes the event seem even more special – and the warm welcome from the Director showed how closely they have been involved.

Kentish Town C of E

The great things about singing in choirs are that almost everyone can do it, it opens up the whole world of music, it helps self-expression and it’s a skill you never forget.

Torriano Juniors

The concert was the end of a 10 week singing programme delivered by teachers from Camden Music Service.  There was fun rhythm as well as good tunes and the choirs were singing several parts most of the time.  Add then you have to add in all the hand and body movements – a lot to think about.

Many thanks to all the students and staff who made it such a good concert.  Nick

Nick outside the defeated student housing site

Kentish Town has a unique character – it’s vital that we protect that. Cowboy developers are a real threat. I’ve been working with residents in Holmes Road and the Inkerman area to fight plans for a massive new student block.

We threw the plans out when they came to Camden’s planning committee but the developer decided to appeal that democratic decision. And we beat them again at the Planning Inspector’s hearing on Tuesday! It’s fantastic news for local residents!

I spent the first day listening to the evidence with the Labour Government’s Planning Inspector, who has the job of deciding the appeal. I was pretty worried – round here Inspectors have a bad reputation. They said it was OK to drive trucks up Little Green Street for three years! And gave the green light to developers who wanted to close the Torriano Pub.

We had Camden on our side – the Council officers had originally given 26 good reasons to refuse the application for 358 student rooms. We hoped that would make it tough for the developer. But I had cleared my diary for the day to make sure that I was there to represent resident’s views.

The first thing we heard at the appeal was that not only did the developers have the gall to say that this was a suitable development for the area, but they wanted to almost double the size of the basement. The brass neck! It would have meant loads of extra trucks during the construction – and the developers wanted to say this was a trivial change!

I pointed out that no one had heard anything about these proposed changes. And the Inspector threw out their application. From there on they were in trouble and it was not long before the developer withdrew their case. Victory for the residents of Kentish Town!

My main concern was that the community was in danger of losing a large, well-located and successful commercial site in the middle of the Kentish Town industrial area. This site is really important for local jobs. And over 350 more students – on top of 170 vet students – would really change the character of the area.

The owner wanted to build an extra storey for bedsits as well as excavating the basement for storage. I joined Patrick Lefevre and his friends from the Dartmouth Park Conservation Area in opposing the application in October. Highgate Rd is about the oldest street in Kentish Town so we want to protect its heritage.

This week the inspector has agreed that the additional storey would ruin the roofline of the area and ‘have an adverse impact on the conservation area’.
There is possible bad news because another application is already in process, but it doesn’t seek an extra storey or an excavated basement, so is not nearly as bad as the last one.

The view of 72-78 Highgate Road as it is today