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Athlone House on Hampstead Lane |
Thousands are urged to help save Athlone
PEOPLE power is being enlisted to stop a giant new mansion being built overlooking Hampstead Heath.
The Highgate Society are spearheading a campaign to encourage 15,000 residents who live on the borders of the Heath to fight the demolition of Victorian hospital Athlone House on Hampstead Lane. Developers want to replace it with an £80million mansion designed by classical architect Robert Adam.
The campaign includes a mass leafleting to raise awareness of the plan – due to be heard by councillors next week – and information stalls on the Heath this weekend.
The campaign has been organised by an alliance between influential amenity groups the Highgate Society and the Heath and Hampstead Society. The developer has ignored an agreement made four years ago that allowed blocks of luxury flats to be built in the grounds of the former hospital in return for the home, built by chemical manufacturer Edward Brooke, being restored to its former glory.
Highgate Society chairwoman Catherine Budgett-Meakin said: “We want a mass mobilisation to help stop this and create a big head of steam. We need to show councillors how strong public feeling is about this.”
Planning law expert David Cooper, representing the owners who have not been identified, has said his clients do not feel bound by the previous planning restrictions as they were made with previous owners.
Mrs Budgett-Meakin said the home’s plight – if the build goes ahead, it will be a private residence with a swimming pool, cinema, staff quarters and parking for a fleet of cars – filled many with sadness because of its previous role for all sections of society. It offered care for soldiers who had served their country and then was used by older people recovering from hospital stays.
A spokesman for the owners claim the home is beyond repair.
“Athlone House, which is not listed, has sadly lost most of the distinctive aspects of its character that gave it its original architectural interest,” the spokesman added. “It is now neither Victorian in character, nor suitable for modern domestic use.” |
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Your comments:
DO not destroy this historical house! Please keep the heritage of England as it should be, in good care and for every body to apreciate! Resident of Highgate
J Miranda |
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