Kimpton Road Area - Will this make Mr Hilldrup Happy?

I thought I would set out some thoughts about the whole Kimpton site.

If I were a Councillor in marginal Stonecot ward I would be seriously embarrassed by the way some of the public realm looks in this area.

I note that on 8 June, Councillor Tony Shields in the Sutton Guardian criticised the sale of the land to Tesco in 2003. The facts are it was actually agreed to sell the site on July 16 2001. The only votes against were the 4 Labour Councillors, whilst the Tories abstained and the Lib Dems voted in favour. Perhaps Tony should talk to Councillors Whitham and Geiringer about it?

Whilst I voted against the sale because it led to an extension of Tescos to the detriment of the High Street, the idea of putting the land on the market for a highest bid would have led to an even more intense development which we would have had less control of. Is Tony Shields talking to Mr Hiildrup about this issue as have they realised the implications? Tony's solution is actually reminiscent of his predecessors which led to the Lodge Lands and the Carshalton Public Hall fiascos. Perhaps he should seriously talk to Councillors Whitham and Geiringer for their recollections of the era when Tory Councillors were so obsessed with the highest bid they lost sight of the wider local implications. Short-termist Toryism is being sensibly phased out by Mr Cameron (commitments to eradidicate child poverty by 2020 etc), so maybe this suggestion is just a blip

Below are some ideas on how we could proceed with the Kimpton area, which might please Mr Hilldrup:

1. The landscaping approved at Strategy makes sense. It would be best to set this out in a wider landscaping strategy. We should be cutting back on some of the current vegetation and thus reduce the appalling levesl of fly-tipping we see almost in sight of the reuse and recycling centre. I foresee a Councillor Kennedy photo showing a dumped TV on the footpath leading to the reuse and recycling centre if this work isn't done soon! No doubt Councillor Brett-Young will be sorting this out when he can get his hands on some section 106 money.

2. The land next to the primary school which will not now become part of a link road, should be developed as a local community space in consultation with local residents. Perhaps we can interest the BBC "Breathing Spaces" project and secure some match funding from Tesco as they promote their new kind image (withdrawal from the Sunday opening campaign etc).

3. Instead of increasing our capital income as Councillor Shields suggests, we should reduce our currently assumed receipt as the Council should reclassify some of the industrial land it was intending to sell or let and actually expand the Reuse and Recycling centre which is too small for peak times. If Councillor Hall wants to help marginal Stonecot Councillors and marginal MP's he might want to end peak-time complaints about the centre with a bit more space from land we still own, rather than simply making excuses to his colleages, that it is "ok most of the time".