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particularly Wilmer Place, which, she says, could have been carried out with greater imagination. Her view is that the planning authority — the Council — should insist on good quality architecture. John Emms of John’s Garden Centre is a realist. So he should be as he’s been in Church Street since 1963 — those heady days when Stoke Newington was an independent borough. He’s seen the street go through boom and bust, knocking down, building up and rags to riches (well, almost). Starting as a greengrocer, he soon realised that with the ‘big bang’ of gentrification in the 1980s, there were better opportunities in selling plants and flowers. He has a successful and well-run business and is active in the local Business Association but he often quotes the effects of the last recession when he watched sky-high house prices create huge mortgage debt with a consequent fall in consumer spending. He warns double-income affluent people not to be smug and puts it bluntly: ‘It might be coffee and croissants today but it could be cheese sandwiches and a thermos flask tomorrow.’ John too regrets the lack of day-time passing trade and it’s significant that a fair proportion of his business is now with customers on the end of a telephone ordering flowers to be sent to the City and more distant places, often overseas. John doesn’t believe in taking chances. Brian Bell is the Secretary of the Stoke Newington Neighbourhood Committee. This is a Council body made up of the 12 Stoke Newington councillors from 5 wards which meets monthly to determine planning applications. Its meetings are open to the public. Official Council policy is to seek to retain approximately 50 per cent of Al general purpose shops (see page 6) in the street. He’s quite frank about the way some see the protectors of Church Street as elitist and quotes a local councillor as saying ‘I love all the old buildings but I want to live in a street, not a museum.’ He acknowledges that the 50 per cent target can’t be protected for all time as each application must be judged ‘on its merits’. A critical issue is the future of Stoke Newington Town Hall. He confirms that the council offices and staff will be returning there. This should mean more lunchtime trade in the street. The Assembly Rooms will also be available for entertainment and functions. A rather startling new development will be the establishment of the 24 hour Hackney emergency control centre in the basement.This will monitor all the CCTV cameras in the borough and will be linked by computer and telecommunications to the police and other emergency services. Be careful where you chuck that crisp packet. They’ll be watching you. The Goldcrest development plans (‘affordable luxury’) at the old Defoe Road depot have been recently rejected on appeal by the Department of the Environment, upholding the Council’s original decision to refuse permission, due to inappropriate design and not enough employment floorspace. But Brian agrees that conditions reserving parts of some new private housing developments for employment as well as living, are currently almost impossible to enforce. Who would know if the designated ‘work’ areas were used as extra rooms? What do local politicians think? Jamie Carswell represents North Defoe ward that covers much of Church Street. He says that the strength of the street is that it is cosmopolitan and Council policy aims to maintain it that way. But he adds, ‘We clearly don’t want empty properties, which would be a return to the bad old days. We should try to use the benefits of Church Street to assist in the regeneration of the High Street. There is an artificial barrier in some people’s minds between the two.’ THE FUTURE? We don’t pretend that this has been a comprehensive survey, more a selective test of opinion. However, we do believe that it is possible to draw some conclusions. On the positive side, it does look as though the daytime street trade will pick up, due to more jobs in the Town Hall and the introduction of new, popular shops. The downside is that the future looks problematical — to say the least — for some small, traditional traders. Rents are being raised and larger enterprises are waiting in the wings to move in, often at the beckoning of estate agents scouting the area. It would be a great shame if some of them go, particularly the unconventional ones such as the hardware, junk and second-hand bookshops who play an extremely useful role in supplying stuff near at hand that is often unavailable in the big stores. Estate agents are always with us as property prices in Stoke Newington continue to rise above the national trend. But do we really need any more of their offices? Surely not. New developments such as Wilmer Place, Red Square and Scholar’s Place are bringing more relatively affluent people into the area but it’s important to remember that there are also council estates and student-occupied flats. It’s essential that these residents should also be able to shop at reasonable prices. It’s good to attract people to the street but not at the expense of others. Then there’s the big question — restaurants — do we have enough? The Council is trying to hold the line in the short term but will they succeed in the future? Our guess is, probably not. Cash-strapped Hackney is anxious to bring business into the borough. However, what the market brings, it can also take away. A monoculture economy in Church Street would be extremely vulnerable in a recession. What we can say, with confidence, is that Stoke Newington Church Street will continue to be an interesting and attractive locality that pulls in people from outside. However, we should remember what almost everybody told us — including quite a few not named here — is that the right mix and balance of facilities is essential for a viable local economy. This is the responsibility of Hackney Council. Upper Street, Islington, is not necessarily a good role model for Church Street. Some might say that it even serves as a warning as to what could happen if apparent short-term gain prevails over common sense. Some joined-up planning is required. |
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