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Published: 25 February 2010
by DAN CARRIER

WHEN Bill Greenleaf was a lad growing up in Albany Street, he remembers watching the Cumberland Market estate being built – and he recalls the excitement he and his family felt when they were given keys to a flat just before war broke out after nearly 10 years on a waiting list.

The 85-year-old still lives on the Regent’s Park Estate, a stone’s throw from the home he was born in, with Mary, his wife of 64 years.

But they fear the address that has provided a haven for them since they were first married may not be available to offer a safe and happy community to any one but multi-millionaires in the future.

The Crown Estate, who own the 590 properties, are planning to sell the homes off. A massive campaign to force them to change their minds is under way. A meeting on Monday night, hosted by the residents association and with speeches from Labour MP Frank Dobson and Councillor Heather Johnson, saw more than 250 residents turn out to voice their fears.

Mr Greenleaf, who served during the war in the Far East,   recalls the hay market at the heart of the estate, where bales would be sold for the dray horses working in the mews around the back of Regent’s Park, and how the canal came right into its ­centre. “We’d swim in it but they filled it in with bomb debris to make the allotments,” said Mr Greenleaf.

His father was an air-raid warden, and Mr Greenleaf recalls a landmine being snared on the steeple of  Christ Church in Albany Street. “Its parachute got caught,” he said. “I managed to get a length of the silk when the Navy came to cut it down and make it safe. Luckily it never went off, or there would be no estate left for us to fight for.”

Mr Greenleaf, who worked in advertising, and Mary, who was a dressmaker, have many happy memories and they insist that the Crown should remain their landlords.

Mr Greenleaf said: “There is a community here. I don’t have an allotment but my neighbours often bring me extra vegetables they have grown. It has provided affordable homes in the middle of London and should continue to do so.” The residents’ association have demanded the Crown offer a ballot to tenants on the sale – and come clean over who they approached to test the waters as to whether they can sell the homes.

But the Crown have so far refused to say who may be in the running, nor how much the estate is worth. It has also declined to hold a vote, saying they are running a “consultation” period instead.

Association chairman Steve Smith said the proposed sale could see flats sold on the private market, outdoor space sold to developers, rents raised and tenancy agreements torn up.

The Crown say no decision has been made and a  spokesman said it was “duty bound” to consider the sell-off as they look to ensure their portfolio – which includes Regent’s Street – brings in maximum returns.

The spokesman added: “A review of our residential estates suggests we should consider whether this could be better achieved through the sale of the properties to a focused provider of this type of housing.”

According  to documents seen by the New Journal received under the Freedom of Information Act, plans are far advanced with the Crown’s board first discussing the sell-off more than a year ago, secretively dubbing it “Operation Blue” and touting the possible sale to property companies and housing associations.

The Crown’s spokesman added that despite the decades of managing Cumberland Estate – the first block opened in 1926 – the landlords “do not have the same scale of housing management expertise” as the groups they had approached.

He added: “The Crown Estate Board will consider the outcome of the consultation process and the marketing exercise before making a final decision. We expect this to be within four to six weeks after the consultation period has finished.”