Posts Tagged Angel
25 February, 2009 at 11:53 am
· Filed under Neighbourhood ·Tagged Angel, Camden Passage, Mall, planning, shops
Hazel Blears’ Planning Inspectorate has ridden roughshod over local views again.
Last year it was the Old Street tower; now it’s the redevelopment of the Mall at Camden Passage.
Camden Passage is a unique mix of market stalls and permanent antiques shops. Over recent years it’s become diluted with more fashion shops and eateries, but the core antiques business is still strong. And one of the most distinctive buildings in the area is the Mall.
That’s partly because it’s the most visible bit of Camden Passage, being on Upper Street; and the first bit you reach from the Angel tube. And partly because it’s such an interesting building. Originally it was a tramshed, part of the North Metropolitan Tramways Company set up in 1871, operating horse-drawn trams.
It’s long had a restaurant upstairs (formerly the wonderful Lola’s) and downstairs, a collection of small specialist antiques shops creating the famous mall.
I’ve blogged before about the battle to defend the Mall from developers. Unable to touch the outside of the building, they applied to take down the partitions creating the mall effect inside to create one large retail unit – and not for antiques. It’s not just vandalism, it’s daft too. Surely it’s counter-intuitive to these recessionary times to put all the eggs in one large basket, compared to the range of thriving small shops. That’s the developers’ problem. But it also undermines the character of Camden Passage. And that’s bad news for all of us who love Islington.
The traders fought a fine campaign. Councillors of both parties, headed by Council leader James Kempton, objected to the plans. The Council rejected the plans and fought the case at appeal.
Clearly all the Labour government’s talk of the new localism is so much hot air.
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24 February, 2009 at 10:32 pm
· Filed under Consumer, Neighbourhood ·Tagged Angel, Islington, shops, Waitrose, Woolworths
When we lost our local Woolworths last summer, we didn’t know then they would all be going.
I was sceptical about the plan to replace our busy Woolworths. It was one of only two in Islington, the other all the way up at the Archway (it’s also now closed of course); and we already had 2 Waitroses, one at Nags Head and one on Whitecross Street near Old Street.
The only comfort is that at least our Woolies workers beat the others to the front of the job centre queue 
It’s not as if we got an instant replacement. Waitrose was supposed to open in October last year. It’s still nto happened. But finally there is some activity behind the hoardings, and the latest word is that the new store will open on 2nd April.
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18 January, 2009 at 2:01 pm
· Filed under Campaigns ·Tagged Angel, canvassing, Islington, Liberal Democrats, St Peter's ward
Getting people out to campaign in January can be a challenge. So I was a little anxious in advance of our first full action day of 2009.
It clashed with the policy conference at LSE. Some colleagues were helping in local by-elections in other boroughs. The weather forecast was bad – I could hear the wind and rain bashing the windows when I woke up. Then came a couple of texts from activists unable to make it. As Rich and I helped unload survey forms at the ward HQ, we wondered if anyone would be joining us.
No need to worry. The sun came out, and so did the helpers. We had two teams out in the morning. My morning team got off to a flying start. The first door we knocked on, I introduced myself, and the lady said, “Oh yes, I vote for you, how lovely to meet you!”. Husband was summoned, email addresses exchanged, and offers of coffee politely declined. Our newest canvasser was very impressed. He stayed enthusiastic, even when the dog a few doors down audibly ate his leaflet. The councillor on our team was getting more compliments than casework. And by the time we headed back to HQ for lunch, we’d even recruited a new deliverer.
Our kind hosts were scrabbling to find extra chairs as we ate their soup at lunchtime. Looking round the table, we had activists whose backgrounds include French, Dutch, Somali, Finnish, Turkish, and (most exotic of all, for Islington) south London; mostly young, many new, all keen. People joined in during the day, by the end we’d had 5 teams of canvassers out. One of the newbies has already phoned to volunteer door-knocking on Tuesday too. Like the chip ad says, it’s all good….
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22 November, 2008 at 7:11 am
· Filed under Campaigns, Neighbourhood ·Tagged Angel, pedestrian crossing, road safety
It’s been a long time coming, but we’ve now heard the good news back from TfL that they’ve finally agreed to our demands and will move the Angel crossing.
As the thousands of people who use it every day know, this crossing is a nightmare: it’s too crowded, people have too long to wait, the crossing point is too far from the bus stops, and we have cars still passing while the green man is on.
I started this campaign back in 2004 and I’m so grateful to everyone who has supported it in that time. Islington Council, specifically Council leader James Kempton, have been brilliant in supporting the campaign. Special thanks to everyone who signed the petition or responded to the consultation this summer.
We mustn’t let things slip now. So I’m asking people to keep writing to the local papers to keep up the public pressure on TfL and the Mayor of London for action as well as promises.
Moving the crossing won’t happen overnight: work is due to start next spring/summer 2009 – watch this space for progress reports.
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14 August, 2008 at 10:48 pm
· Filed under Campaigns, Neighbourhood ·Tagged Angel, cocktails, Islington, pubs, St Peter's ward
When thunderstorms were raging over London earlier today, I wondered if I should cancel tonight’s campaign session. Just as well I didn’t!
It was a really successful foray round the pretty small streets just off City Road near the Angel. Comparing notes at the end of the evening we had one new member, two new deliverers and a batch of supporters.
We’d planned to meet for drinks at the lovely Charles Lamb pub on Elia Street, but it was packed out (maybe Thursday is the new Friday…). So we went to the Arc. Confession time: I’ve never been in there before. It’s a bit of an identikit modern pub – low leather sofas, sports channel on screens, lager and BOGOF cocktails.
Normally I’d have a swift half but we’d had such a good evening, I felt like a celebration. And the Arc’s cocktail du soir was a Stormy Weather. The main flavour is ginger, my favourite, so that was that. I normally get headaches before a storm; if I feel rough tomorrow, I’ve only myself to blame.
Meanwhile, if you’ve missed out, here’s a Stormy Weather recipe. It couldn’t be easier, and tastes equally delicious whatever the weather.
And if you prefer a song, listen to Ethel Waters here…..
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26 July, 2008 at 7:52 pm
· Filed under Movies, media, music & culture, Neighbourhood ·Tagged Angel, Kings Cross, Tribune
The Islington Tribune has letters on two of our current campaign issues. On Kings Cross access, campaign organiser Sophie Talbot and Lib Dem Cllr Marisha Ray have both written in urging support for the new bridge.
And on the Angel crossing, there are letters of support from James Graham and Cllr Jyoti Vaja – plus one from Avis Baldry, who doesn’t support having the crossing moved. But at least people are taking an interest.
Mind you, had history taken a different path, Avis would have had a more direct lobbying route to TfL than writing to the local paper. Her husband Ken Baldry was one of the contenders to be Labour’s candidate for Mayor of London, back in 2000 when Ken Livingstone was still an independent. His campaign diary (Ken B not Ken L that is) is certainly an entertaining read.
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26 July, 2008 at 5:17 pm
· Filed under Neighbourhood ·Tagged Angel, road crossing
There’s still time to respond to TfL’s consultation on the route 38 improvement programme – which is our big chance to get Angel crossing sorted out. You can read more about the plans and download a consultation document here; the consultation period ends on 31st July (next Thursday). Say YES to Option A to get the crossing moved.
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18 July, 2008 at 5:46 pm
· Filed under Campaigns, Neighbourhood ·Tagged Angel, Islington, road crossing
On Tuesday, Islington Tribune journalist Peter Gruner and I took our lives in our hands to witness the scenes at Angel crossing at rush hour.
The Tribune is widely-read locally, and I wanted Peter to see for himself how bad the current crossing is, and how much better it would be if relocated further north.
So I’m pleased to see the story’s in this week’s paper. If you support the campaign, you can sign the petition here.
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28 June, 2008 at 9:27 am
· Filed under Campaigns, Neighbourhood ·Tagged Angel, crossing, safety, TfL
A week is a long time in politics, a year is a short time in bureaucracy.
Make that 4 years, in the case of Transport for London. I’ve blogged before about the pelican crossing outside Angel tube station. It’s a nightmare: southbound traffic from two roads (Upper Street and Liverpool Road) feeds into it and hapless pedestrians who wait for the ‘green man’ find that traffic is still passing, because the signal timings are so bad.It’s usually safer to ignore the signals, keep your eyes open, cross your fingers, and make a run for it. Not the best place to practice the highway code.
Back in 2004, I launched a campaign to improve the crossing. We got the Council on board; it seemed everyone agreed that something should be done. In particular, we argued that moving the crossing, or adding a second crossing, north of the junction with Liverpool Road (so pedestrians would compete with less traffic), would be best. With some 46,000 people a day coming out of the station, you’d think the case for change would be urgent.
Well, finally we hear that TfL may consider moving the crossing, as part of a consultation on changes to the 38 bus route. The problem is that it may be bundled with other changes that are less acceptable to people in Islington. So we need to ensure that residents know this is their chance to get action on the crossing. And that TfL are left in no doubt that whatever happens to the rest of their plans, we still want the crossing moved.
So earlier this week, I was out with a couple of my team first thing, trying to get the perfect photo to illustrate the problem. We had a 15 minute ‘window’ on our way to work, surely enough time for one snap? Easier said than done, as Keith & I lurk in the middle island, with lorries, buses and the Islington rush hour all around us.
‘Stand outside the railing’, yelled Adam, my man with the camera. Visions of this blog coming to you from A&E, featuring ambulance response times… But in the end we got the ‘money shot’ – cars vs people while the green man shows – and hurried off to our various day jobs. The results are up on the campaign site and Facebook. As for TfL, it’s their job to sort out this crossing, now.
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6 June, 2008 at 5:45 pm
· Filed under Campaigns, Neighbourhood ·Tagged Angel, Angel crossing, Chapel Market, Islington, restaurants, road crossing, safety
I had lunch with my friend Daniel, who works at the Angel, today.
We went for a bargain meal at the legendary Indian Veg restaurant in Chapel Market. They do an all you can eat veggie buffet for under £5, excellent value in slightly odd surroundings. The restaurant is decorated with photos of impossibly beautiful Indian women attributing their good looks to their veggie diet. We live in hope...
As we negotiated the Angel crossing (the one from outside the tube towards Liverpool Road) we once again had the situation where the traffic was still passing while pedestrians had the green light. This must be one of the worst designed crossings in London. Thousands of people coming out of Angel tube or getting off the southbound buses need to get across to the shops, to get home to Barnsbury & beyond, or to get a northbound bus.
You get trapped on a totally inadequate island, with sheep-pen railings (unpleasant for pedestrians, dangerous for cyclists). You have to wait an age for the green light. And if you play by the rules and wait for the green man, traffic is still passing; so you may as well do what many pedestrians do all the time – a dangerous dodge whenever the road looks clear.
One of the problems is that the crossing is just south of the point where Liverpool Road joins Upper Street. So pedestrians have to cope with 2 streams of traffic. Back in 2004, I ran a campaign to get the crossing redesigned; even in the foulest weather, people were happy to queue up to sign the petition, the problems with the current crossing are so evident. With help from Lynne Featherstone we petitioned the Mayor (it’s TfL road); and we got the Council’s backing for a feasibility study.
One solution is to relocate the crossing to the north of the junction, or add a second crossing there. That means pedestrians could cross while the Upper Street traffic was already stopped to let the Liverpool Road traffic through. It would also be much better for passengers changing between bus and tube. I think it’s a brilliantly simple solution: but under Ken Livingstone, nothing happened.
Ken’s big idea was to close the road exit from Liverpool Road to Upper Street. Why is this a bonkers idea? Firstly it’s likely to increase the volume of north-south traffic on Upper Street, making it more difficult and dangerous to cross. Secondly, it would route local traffic further round the back streets of Barnsbury before they could exit onto the A1. Thirdly it would disrupt police access to the police station. Oh, and it would block two bus routes, and taxi access to the taxi rank. So much for supporting public transport. Totally barmy.
However, with a new Mayor in place, we have a chance to get some action. The petition is still available to sign online. A better Angel crossing is still worth the effort.
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