Festivals 2018 in Brockwell Park
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Comments received from Brockwell Park Community Partners stakeholder groups (2) 1. Comment from John Roberts Brockwell Park Miniature Railway I am extremely concerned about these huge paid events, that are most likely to start from the beginning of June through to no doubt the middle of August due to breakdown of the event site. We in Brockwell Park Miniature Railway had already sustained vandalism from the Sunfall festival, with out-of-pocket loss. The survival of the railway has been put at great risk of closing down, as we rely on the 2018 fares to help pay our insurance. As I no longer have a serviceable vehicle, without the container there is a very strong chance that we may not open in 2018. 2. Colin Wight On behalf of the Herne Hill Society I brought these two proposals to the attention of the committee of the Herne Hill Society and they were discussed yesterday evening. Please any of what follows that may be helpful. The Society's aim is to help improve the quality of the environment and amenities of the locality for the benefit of residents and visitors. Given that these are priced commercial events, there seems to be little, if any, clear benefit to the general community of Herne Hill in these proposals. Loss of the amenity of large areas of the park for extended periods during the summer (weeks rather than days) is a major factor, in addition to the large crowds and noise nuisance of the three-day events themselves. We believe that the numbers planned for (up to 40,000 in a single day) with most people arriving and leaving within a narrow time slot will be very disruptive to residents and other visitors who wish to move around the area and will not be welcomed by the majority of traders. We also note that Victoria Park, the previous venue for both events, is nearly twice the size of Brockwell Park. We would welcome a presentation from the organisers that would give local residents and traders, and other interested parties, the opportunity to express their concerns. Colin Wight, for The Herne Hill Society Comments from M. Rogers, Voting member of the public (BPCP) > I have spoken to some members of the public who are concerned about: Potential loss of quiet space areas of the Park being closed off. Length of time that the whole back to back operation will take and the extra safety security of park users during the period of: Love Box/ Country Show. Amount of time between events 6th June to July leaves less than 1 summer month at a time schools visit the park more often. Football users and other community events. I understand personally the plight Lambeth faces in an austerity led future but it seems to me that this message is not getting across to the general public. Lambeth seems to look at Parks as event venues not as free open, environmentally valuable accessible spaces for the health and wellbeing of the community. As Brixton Society have mentioned: 'they are concerned to see that the proposed event layout will completely block access from the west side of the park to the Lido, and will restrict access to the BMX track and model railway site. There are also concerns raised about thee: problems which inconvenience the Park e.g. by 'Sunfall' queues due to extra security required and the breaking down fences, damage caused of turning lorries and impacts on major road Bus routes etc Numbers of local residents inconvenienced Herne Hill and Tulse hill shops Car parking reductions in local streets Those problems are in addition to the large area of the park that will be taken out of public use, and potential noise and reinstatement issues. Entrance and egress from Water Lane (Gate 7) will utilise the main path that all other park users will need to use to navigate round the park given all the other path closures on event days. This will include of course mobility scooters, cyclists, pushchairs etc. The route from Gate 7 takes festival goers past some sensitive areas of the park, including the Wildflower area (which is still in planning stages), the Community Greenhouses, Walled Garden, landscaped. I also spoke to a concerned resident who knew from personal experience of working at Victoria Park that the extra-mural associated problems occurring due to festivals, which the local council did little to eradicate. Marilyn Rogers, BPCP Comments from individuals responding to BPCP mailings 1. Tanya Shoop - Alexander Technique > wrote: I wish to register my concern about these large events taking place in Brockwell Park. Brockwell Park is a much smaller park than Victoria Park and is not big enough to sustain such large events. They will have a negative impact on the environment - plants, animals and birdlife - and also large events have proved disruptive to the neighbourhood. At the last big event (Sundance?) there was a lot or rubbish strewn around as well as loud drunken behaviour late into the night, including urinating into gardens. This happened all around the park including Brockwell Gate, where I live. Directors from Brockwell Gate wrote to Cllr Winifred at Lambeth to complain about the last event but did not receive a reply. The noise is also very loud for local residents. The park has a lot of housing immediately around it and many people have had to go away for the night or weekends when events are on as it is so noisy. The park is for local residents and will be made inaccessible for weeks at a time with these large events. This is not reasonable. Perhaps it may be unlawful. Brixton is a very densely populated area where a lot of residents need access to outside space. Local businesses also suffer as locals often keep away and visitors just spend their money at the events, giving money to the large businesses running the events. Lambeth have not informed us how the monies raised will be spent. Damage from previous events, including to benches, has still not been rectified. It is highly probably that Lambeth have already signed deals for this, looking at previous behaviours. If this is so, then the consultation process is a mockery. Hopefully you can prove me wrong on this score.I look forward to hearing your views. Tanya Shoop 2. SMITH, HELEN wrote: It is bad enough to tolerate when the park is disrupted now. but to add yet more events and have people drunk and being sick all over the park. The park is a haven for many people including myself and to have more drug dealers and drunks in the park with extra events is not on. Lambeth also have Clapham common they could use. 3. Francesca Mills > wrote: I am writing about the proposal which has been put forward to hold additional festivals in the park in 2018. I am a resident in and am affected by the festivals already held each year. Last year, the noise of the music and the PA systems was so great that we were unable to sit and enjoy the amenity of our own garden, and had to go inside and close the windows so as to have some peace and quiet. Further, the parking in our road, and across our off road parking,( in front of our house) was such that our drive was constantly blocked, making it impossible for us to get into our off road parking. Needless to say, the amount of parked cars on the road made it such that it was also impossible for us to park in our road, and we had to go almost to Dulwich Village to be able to park our car on several occasions. This is all not to mention the rubbish we have to endure, and the noise from people still in party mode leaving the festivals and walking back along our road at night. We have several times had people urinate in our garden - not something we normally have to endure. I am also more than concerned about the effect on the wildlife in the park, especially as it is proposed to extend the current boundaries of the site to the small ponds. I use the park every day, and am also more than inconvenienced by the lack of amenity in being able to use the park whilst the build up and strike take place and during the festivals. I am told that no references were taken up with Tower Hamlets with the organisers of the new proposed festivals...this is lack of due diligence, as they were thrown out of Victoria Park because of their continued lack of compliance over the years. I would like your response to this as a matter of urgency. Francesca Mills 4. Becca Collins > My name is Becca, I’m a current student at the Royal College of Art. I oppose these two festivals. Since I moved to Brixton in the summer, Brockwell Park has been my place of refuge. It’s beginning to really mean a lot to me. I’m planning on spending a lot of time at the park over the next few years, and I’d love to give something back to it. Unfortunately, I study full-time and teach part-time, which means that the time I can give to volunteering is limited, but I would love to show my support for the park in carrying out a project for my studies at Brockwell Park - I’m particularly interested in what the park does for the community, and what it means for the areas identity.