London Plan to get even worse

31 July 2012  Today (1700h) is the last day for submission of objections to the changes which Boris wants to make to the 2011 London Plan. We are working on a Just Space coordinated response – see http://justspace2010.wordpress.com – and the following is what I just sent in on my own account in response to an invitation from Nicky Gavron.  The summary is:

The overwhelmingly important feature of the Alterations is the weakening of London’s capacity to meet its people’s most serious housing needs.  The evidence is that needs for housing among low and middle-income Londoners are becoming even more acute and that any alterations to the Plan should increase, not decrease, the emphasis on social rented housing.

20120724 Assembly REMA

Phew… Euston puddle fixed just in time for Olympics

With the Olympic games just a few days away, workmen miraculously appeared, tinkered with damaged paving and added new tarmac where the historic puddle was. So there is an olympic legacy for all to see. I doubt if I’ll have time to discover who decided to do it but I can imagine the emails, the meetings, the bickering and the contracts involved in fixing problems which ought to have been sorted years ago.  Below is the new tarmac today (25 July 2012):

Backstory go to https://michaeledwards.org.uk/?p=963

 

 

New tarmac filling the Euston Puddle July 2012
But…
One step forward but now a step back. A welcome board for the Olympics is sitting in the Euston Forecourt which directs people East to the British Museum. Should be South.  And remind me about the “sculpted” bit of Regent’s Park… Must be the flattest place in London.

 

Olympiv welcome sign Euston July 2012

Later (7 October 2012): Drainage still keeping the puddle empty two months later. It really does seem to work. Now let’s see if anyone clears the drain when it next clogs.

In other Euston news: UCL is moving into some of the office blocks vacated by Network Rail. Nice for passing UCL people because our Eduroam WiFi fills the forecourt, hitherto (and still for everyone else) a nasty pay-zone.

futures for London / rent theory

I just did a post on London Remade‘s Debate column about what economic policies we should demand from the next Mayor. That’s very short-term. Then tomorrow (20 April) I’m giving the first talk in a UCL event about the London Economy in 2062. Yes 50 years ahead. A bit long term. I’ll post some stuff here and tweet a bit if I can. #L2062 My talk here Edwards London Economy 2062 and all is on web now http://bit.ly/JVQo1g#L2062

Royal Holloway recently held an excellent event Speculating on Slums in which there were talks on rent theory etc by Anna Haila, Louis Moreno and me.  All the material is online now.  My talk  has audio here http://backdoorbroadcasting.net/2012/05/michael-edwards-some-things-we-can-do-with-rent/ and slides here Edwards Rent 20120523.  There were a lot of excellent talks, all audio at  http://backdoorbroadcasting.net/2012/05/speculating-on-slums/

 

 

 

Euston's historic puddle ready for Olympic guests

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19 April. London is ensuring that this historic puddle, which for years has been delaying and infuriating passengers entering and leaving Euston Station, is conserved as part of preparations for the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, starting 100 days from now.

My lengthy correspondence a few years ago led to some abortive works by one of the many public bodies, all of whom deny responsibility. The puddle could easily have been lost, but is now back in it’s full width and depth. Joe Barnes of Liverpool tweets on 18 April “…I nearly drowned…” Click on the photo for more images, then on slideshow. Continue reading “Euston's historic puddle ready for Olympic guests”

Ruth Glass at UCL

[Some friends…] ask if I can explain why “the Ruth Glass interdisciplinary initiative at UCL was disbanded in the end”.  This is the best I can do.  Maybe others can help.

Ruth was a cornery and ungovernable person, incapable of arse-licking.  My feeling always was that this, as much as her radicalism within her work, always made heads of departments keep her (and sociology) rather at arms length. Continue reading “Ruth Glass at UCL”

Frustrating, busy, stimulating, unproductive…

…week or two. Lots of stimulating things which it would have been good to write about, but then on to the next so there was no time. And than a really bad cold which made it hard to play a full part in an INURA meeting. Still here are a few jottings for the record. Skip this post if you are just looking for serious essays. Continue reading “Frustrating, busy, stimulating, unproductive…”

Powers of the London Mayor

The London Evening Standard published an article by the fecund Simon Jenkins. They asked me to write a letter in response, which I did.

Simon Jenkins (24 January) is right to point out how inadequate are the executive and taxation powers of the London Mayor. It would be great to see them strengthened but what would they be used for? Continue reading “Powers of the London Mayor”