by FitzWest admin | Jan 7, 2022 | CIL, Consultations, Greening, Public Space
Thank you to all the residents and businesses who responded to our consultation about planters in Fitzrovia.
The response was overwhelmingly supportive and included lots of great ideas for other places and greening initiatives. And also many offers to help look after the planters with watering and weeding.
100% of respondents were in favour of greening generally in the area and 94% were in favour of all the suggested sites. Click here to see the full report.
We really hope that if we are able to successfully achieve this small amount of greening, then we can begin on other projects.
We have made some adjustments to the proposal, taking into account feedback and concerns (for example the corner planters at locations 2 and 5 will be a smaller rectangle shape not the larger square shape in the photographs – which means there will still be space there for people to wait at these spots when the pavement on New Cavendish Street is crowded.)
Funding Application from CIL
We had anticipated having enough money to complete this project using the Tesco funding, but costs have increased because the planters are on the public highway so we now need safety checks, traffic impact assessments etc. As a result we are now applying for further funding from the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) and will know by February 7th 2022 if we have been successful and are able to complete this project.
by FitzWest admin | Nov 3, 2021 | Consultations, Environment, Greening, Public Space
After consulting previously with residents and businesses, we identified various locations which either have a lot of pavement space or are prone to rubbish dumping – or both! The idea is to position planters in these locations to brighten up and green our streets – but also we hope to deter dumping. We have funding that we successfully applied for from Tesco. The disruption of Covid has meant all plans were put on hold, but now we are keen to use the money to improve the area. Please let us know your thoughts.
Westminster Council have agreed in principle to the locations, so this is about making sure that residents and businesses know what is going on and have had a chance to have their say. Can you help? We are also looking for anyone who would be able to help maintain the planters, e.g. by watering, particularly in the summer.
We are very much hoping that this will lead to further greening projects as there have been many locations suggested by residents and businesses.
Click on this link here to fill out the survey: Fitzwest Greening Project 2021 Survey
by FitzWest admin | Jun 24, 2021 | Consultations, Greening, Oxford Street, Public Space
Westminster City Council has launched a new brochure setting out plans to create piazzas on two sections of Oxford Street either side of Oxford Circus. All traffic going east-west will be diverted northwards through Marylebone and Fitzrovia via John Princes Street, Mortimer Street and Great Portland Street.
Changes to traffic flows are also proposed in Fitzrovia West with part of Mortimer Street being made two-way and the direction of traffic in part of Great Titchfield Street and all of Newman Street and Berners street being reversed. A number of new pedestrian crossings are being installed.
There is no mention of any provision for cyclists nor improved arrangements for servicing and deliveries.
All these changes are being introduced for six months on an ‘experimental’ basis which means the Council is not required to carry out full consultation before beginning work later this year. It will, however, ‘carefully consider input from residents, businesses and other stakeholders’ once the work has been completed.
Full details are set out in the Oxford Street brochure:
The FitzWest Forum has written to West End ward members and Cllr Caplan, Deputy Leader, arguing that full consultation should be carried out now because of the potential impact of these changes on Fitzrovia, as well as Soho, Marylebone and Mayfair.
Reminder:
FITZROVIA WEST GOES TO THE POLLS ON 2ND SEPTEMBER 2021
Your time has come to vote in a referendum on the Neighbourhood Plan on 2nd September 2021. Everyone registered to vote will be able to say whether they want the plan to influence planning decisions and create an improved environment for all those living in, working in and visiting the area. All businesses in the neighbourhood which pay business rates will also get a vote. The Fitzrovia Centre in Foley Street will be the polling station but you can also apply for a postal vote through this link:
https://www.westminster.gov.uk/about-council/democracy/postal-and-proxy-voting
For more information have a look at our website Neighbourhood Plan
by FitzWest admin | Jun 17, 2021 | Consultations, Licensing
Letter from Westminster Council:
Westminster is at the heart of London’s night-time and visitor economy. Whilst licensed premises contribute a huge amount to the economy and vibrancy of the City, they can also create problems for residents and local services. During the Covid-19 pandemic, and especially as restrictions ease, there has been an increase in the number of premises in Westminster offering delivery services. There has been an increase in ancillary deliveries from existing premises and a growing number of applications for delivery centres where food and drink is delivered by either their own delivery personnel or via a third party delivery service.
Whilst we support businesses in Westminster to innovate and diversify, residents have told us that they have some concerns about these developments. In order to support safe, responsible and positive growth the Licensing Authority is proposing amendments to its Statement of Licensing Policy (SLP).
Introduction of new premise uses policies
The Licensing Authority proposes to introduce three new policies, these are:
* Ancillary Delivery of Alcohol and/or Late-Night Refreshment Policy (DEL1)
* Shops Policy (SHP1)
* Delivery Centre Policy (DC1)
Policy DEL1 will apply to venues such as restaurants and bars that want to offer deliveries in addition to their main activities. The presumption is to grant these applications subject to other policies.
Policy SHP1 will replace the existing Off sales of alcohol policy (OS1). The policy will apply to any premises whose primary function is the sale of goods or the offer of services. The policy is more comprehensive than OS1 as it covers all licensable activities that these premises may carry out.
Policy DC1 will apply to venues where the primary function is the sale of alcohol and food via a delivery service. Applications will generally be granted if they are not in predominantly residential areas and subject to other policies.
Other changes
The introduction of these policies will require a number of amendments across the SLP, including:
• Amendments to the Core Hours Policy (HRS1) to reflect the new premises uses
• The Off Sales of Alcohol Policy will be deleted.
• Amend other premises uses policies to refers to ancillary delivery.
We want to know what you think
Consultation will run from Monday 14 June to Sunday 25 July 2021. The consultation documents will be published on our website on the 14th June. The link to the relevant page is www.westminster.gov.uk/licensing-consultation<http://www.westminster.gov.uk/licensing-consultation> (please note that this page will not be live until the 14th June)
If you have any questions, please get in touch with a member of the team at licensingconsultation@westminster.gov.uk<mailto:licensingconsultation@westminster.gov.uk>
by FitzWest admin | Jun 16, 2021 | AGM, Consultations, The Plan
Dear Member
Please join us for the AGM which, due to the ongoing restrictions, will be held via Zoom.
Your attendance at the AGM is particularly important this year as we will be discussing the forthcoming referendum on the Neighbourhood Plan. There will be information available about the Plan and the referendum.
If you wish to attend, please email us at info@fitzwest.org by 4pm on Wednesday 7th July and we will send you the necessary link, password and documents.
by FitzWest admin | Feb 1, 2021 | Consultations, Environment, Greening, Our Neighbourhood
We want your ideas
The problem of on-street rubbish dumping and the need for more greenery are frequently mentioned by our members as important issues for all of us living and working in Fitzrovia.
The FitzWest Forum has supported various schemes to improve waste collection and deal with fly tipping. There is still a lot of progress to be made in this area and discussions are on going with Westminster Council on ways to deal with this.
One way to combat dumping is by improving the street scape – and a relatively quick way to do this is by planting and greening. The hope is that this will both deter dumping and also bring some much needed greenery into the area. We are planning to apply for funding from the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) which is a levy that local authorities can choose to charge on new developments in their area. The money is used to support development by funding infrastructure that the council, local community and neighbourhoods want.
We are very keen to for our members to suggest where potential planting could take place. With the help of the wider membership last year, we had previously identified various ‘dumping hot spots’ which you can see on the map. We have two questions for you.
- Which of these do you think would be best suited for adding planters and greening?
- Are there any other places you would suggest? Several sites have been identified in the central area of FitzWest – but what about the North and South?
Please comment on this page or email your ideas to us at info@fitzwest.org. We will collect all the suggestions together and select the most popular locations for our application.
