Conserve or destroy?

Published: 23 July, 2010

• NO 2 St Paul’s Road, a building more than 150 years old in Canonbury conservation area, is in danger of demolition, although structurally sound.

Its future is in the hands of an Islington Council planning sub-committee.

Earlier plans to rebuild have been rejected by the council or by government inspectors.

The new plan does not take into account failings that previously contributed to rejection, such as threat to trees subject to preservation orders and loss of green garden space.

The new plan proposes a basement lit by pavement lights a few paces from a busy crossroad, considered unsuitable by the planning sub-committee.

The planning department has failed to respond to many objections to the style of the proposed building, which is widely considered unsuitable for a conservation area opposite the distinguished church and at the end of a grade II terrace of houses of similar age to No 2. 

If the planning sub-committee accepts the proposal to demolish No 2 it will have rubber-stamped the destruction of the first sound building of that age since the conservation area was established.

If they reject it, we hope that a third inspector will be more sympathetic to the views of local people and of our MP, Jeremy Corbyn, than the planning department is.

JOHN DARRAH
Chairman, St Paul’s Conservation and Residents Society