Viva Vauxhall

We were heard first and the hearing/meeting lasted over two hours.  The developer was heavily represented by the architects, various experts (to comment on particular issues), and there were nice presentation boards and a large scale model of the tower (which lit up!) and the surrounding area.  There is no way that we can compete against that, and which is why we do need local residents to turn up en mass to these hearings to show the strength of local feeling against the Octave Tower proposal – and, importantly, provide vocal support for us/opposition to the scheme from the gallery.

On our side were April and Danny speaking as Viva Vauxhall as per the mandate given to them by our members, and Cllrs Andrew Sawdon and Rob Banks speaking against the current scheme on behalf of themselves and local residents.  April really deserves some special praise here – she knew the 40 page report inside out and really socked it to the committee highlighting inaccuracies in the report and issues that had been ignored or not addressed properly. She deservedly received a round of applause from the gallery when she finished.  And a big thank you to those local residents who came along to support us.

Council officers from the planning department will take account of the committee’s comments and amend the report.  No date yet known for the final application meeting, but we will keep people informed…