The right moment for old cinema’s curtain to fall

THE COUNCIL’S KING STREET SCHEME HAS BEEN WITHDRAWN. IF NO ALTERNATIVE PROCEEDS, THE CINEMA WILL BE SAVED AND IT WILL BE GREAT NEWS FOR THE ‘SAVE OUR CINEMA’ CAMPAIGNERS. OR WILL IT BE?

WITHOUT DOUBTING THE SINCERITY BEHIND THE CAMPAIGN TO SAVE THE CINEMA, I AM AT A LOSS TO KNOW WHO WILL ACTUALLY SAVE THE CINEMA AND HOW.

WITH OUTMODED EQUIPMENT FOR SOUND AND VISION, NUMEROUS MISSING SEATS AND A RUN-DOWN BUILDING, THE CINEMA IS IN AN APPALLING STATE.

NONE OF ITS PREVIOUS REPUTABLE OWNERS – CANNON, GM, VIRGIN, UGC (EUROPE’S LARGEST CINEMA OPERATOR) AND BLACKSTONE GROUP – SAW ANY FUTURE IN IT AND TOOK A COMMERCIAL DECISION NOT TO UPGRADE IT.

THE LAST, CINEWORLD, SOLD IT TO A DEVELOPER – ST JAMES’S INVESTMENTS (SJI), TESCO’S DEVELOPER ARM – FULLY KNOWING THAT IT WOULD BE DEMOLISHED AND REDEVELOPED.

CINEWORLD NOW RUNS IT AS A TENANT ON A SHORT LEASE SELLING CHEAP TICKETS.

SJI’S TWO PLANNING APPLICATIONS TO DEVELOP THE SITE AS A TESCO WERE REJECTED – THE SECOND WENT TO AN APPEAL BUT WAS WITHDRAWN. IT CAN BE RESUBMITTED.

IF SJI CANNOT OR DO NOT WISH TO REDEVELOP THIS PRIME TOWN CENTRE SITE IT WOULD PROBABLY BE SOLD TO ANOTHER DEVELOPER FOR AN ALTERNATIVE DEVELOPMENT. IT IS NAïVE TO THINK THAT A DIFFERENT CINEMA OPERATOR WILL STEP IN TO SAVE IT WHEN OTHERS DID NOT WANT TO AS A COMMERCIAL DECISION.

RAJ BHATIA

EMLYN ROAD

SHEPHERD’S BUSH

It’s time to think about the needs of the young

I WAS furious to read Councillor Helen Binmore’s response to the closure of yet another of the Hammersmith and Fulham’s ever dwindling community spaces with the typically bullish assertion that ‘this council makes no apology for putting people before buildings’.

In the past four years we have been treated to many pictures of people standing before buildings, as group after group of residents protest in front of their local venues, trying to save the community spaces from joining the ever growing list of buildings that have been sold off.

The fact she is the cabinet member for children’s services makes her regurgitation of the party line, that lower council tax is what everybody wants, regardless of the cost to the community, even more exasperating.

Shouldn’t she be thinking about the needs of the young people in our area? Isn’t that her role?

The wide range of services provided at the College Park Residents’ Association-managed centre offers great opportunities for local residents of all ages.

The team of volunteers has provided thousands of hours of service to the community, finding out what local residents want and providing many different events, classes and sessions.

The council’s decision to close the centre with less than two months notice, a lack of any consultation and complete failure to identify suitable alternative venues for housing the sessions, makes this yet another demonstration of our Tory-led council’s total lack of respect or care for the residents they are meant to serve.

If they have their way we would just sit back while our local centre is sold to a property developer with no consideration for the community’s needs. Shameful!

TOM CURRIE

Letchford Gardens

College Park ward

Even the good drivers are hounded in Fulham

I MOVED to Fulham after living in Kensington and Chelsea for over 25 years.

I had not realised how much I took for granted being able to move around my ‘little village’.

Since moving to Fulham, I have received more penalty charges in one year than I did in 10 years in Chelsea.

I consider myself a considerate and good driver, but feel completely hounded in Fulham.

The cost of policing the many zones must be horrendous.

I propose that the council considers giving Fulham back to the residents and let us move around the areas to visit friends and businesses at will, rather than having to feed meters continuously.

This would make us feel part of a vibrant community and let us reclaim our own little village.

It would also be good for businesses with small sole traders in far parts of the borough (Shepherd’s Bush for example) being visited by many more residents – like Notting Hill.

I would like to understand why we have such small limited zones which create such animosity and problems.

I am tempted to move back to Chelsea because as everyone knows the permit is worth its weight in gold – how nice if we could say the same about Fulham.

Please think outside the narrow, narrow box.

CéLINE T MERTENS

Fulham

Doctor misses point of innovative street design

DR TAYLOR’S letter on the cost of refurbishing Exhibition Road (Chronicle, Dec 16) is as disingenuous as it is predictable. He has always favoured the motorist over all other kinds of road user. The overall cost of the scheme is just over £22million, but that cost covers a lot more than just the cost of laying the granite paving stones.

Dr Taylor’s calculation for the unit cost of the granite paving in Exhibition Road is both based on a false premise and is seriously wrong. In fact, the cost of the stone in Exhibition Road is comparable to natural stone laid in other parts of the country and in London.

I think Dr Taylor misses the point of this innovative street design. Pedestrians are able to cross Exhibition Road safely over its entire length rather than being restricted to designated crossing points.

Anyone who has ever visited the museums during the school holidays will know how inadequate the old narrow pavements were.

Exhibition Road gives a dramatic reassignment of space for pedestrians without pedestrianising the road, which can sometimes sterilise an area and make it difficult for deliveries and disabled access.

Clearly pedestrians must exercise caution, as they would when crossing any road, but in Exhibition Road, traffic is restricted to a maximum speed of 20mph and sightlines are excellent for both drivers and pedestrians.

Dr Taylor has absolutely no evidence to back his claim that the road is dangerous, and I can assure your readers that the scheme has been meticulously assessed throughout the design stages and we are now monitoring the road to see how it is used in practice.

Dr Taylor makes reference to the need for step-free access at South Kensington station. Of course the council fully supports step-free access, but the station is owned by Transport for London (TfL), not the council. It would be naïve to believe that TfL would have installed lifts at the station if they had not contributed to Exhibition Road.

The new streetscape is an appropriate setting for the museums and institutions that surround it. Next year the road will play an important role while we celebrate the Jubilee and host a festival that celebrates the Olympic spirit.

COUNCILLOR NICK PAGET-BROWN

Deputy leader of the council and cabinet member for transport