Wood Green AAP events: As though Page High doesn't exit
At Haringey council’s ‘drop-in’ sessions on the Wood Green Area Action Plan (AAP) the local authority has attempted to render Page High, a social housing estate marked for demolition, invisible.
There has been no mention of the estate on any of the ‘information boards’ at the ‘drop-in’ sessions.
No mention of the 92 social rent homes at Page High--or the 200+ social rent homes at Sky City--that would face the wrecking ball if council plans go ahead.
Instead, at events such as the one at the former Wood Green post office on February 21st, we are given only posters fuzzily indicating what would be areas of new development.
If the council is trying to render Page High invisible, this is nothing new. Page 132 of the AAP refers to Bury Road car park, on top of which Page High estate sits, and an unspecified number of “residential units”—there is no mention of the number of homes, nor even the estate’s name.
Yet if the car park is levelled, as the council plans, the 92-home Page High estate would go go down with it.
On top of the car park, Page High is an architecturally innovative and prize-winning rooftop village that already adds 'character' to the area.
The council has not considered either the improvement and maintenance of the car park, or the re-purposing and alternative use of the building.
Why might the council be so interested in destroying the Sanctuary Housing Association estate of Page High and rebuilding on the site?
Prime real estate: that’s the answer. We’re a few minutes’ walk from two tubes, and a new development for wealthier people would bring in far more council tax.
What would happen to the original residents? Where would we go? No one knows.
We are assured of a ‘right to return’ on the same tenancy. But what about the level of the service charge we pay? Or the council tax?
And what about the little matter of being forced out of our homes for no convincing reason in the first place?
Page High Tenants’ Association is firmly against the AAP proposed demolition of our estate.
We’re not opposed to regenerating Wood Green, and we think there should be a local authority plan for area.
But regeneration should not be at the expense of existing residents, and it should not undermine social housing.
We all have until March 16 to respond to the current AAP consultation.
The council can try all it likes to treat us as though we don’t exist. But we’re here, we’re gathering support, and we’re not going away.
Please support Page High by responding to the AAP.