Issue - meetings

Having considered an officer report and presentations by the Cabinet Member

for Housing, Councillor Paul Bell, two members of the public from Reginald

Road and the Chair of the Sustainable Development Select Committee,

Councillor Liam Curran, the Mayor and Cabinet agreed that:

(1) the update on the Deptford Southern Housing Sites project, as detailed

in section 5 be noted;

(2) the Development Agreement be varied to extend the longstop date to 30

June 2019; and

(3) authority be delegated to the Executive Director for Resources &

Regeneration, in consultation with the Executive Director for Customer

Services and the Head of Law, to negotiate and agree the necessary legal

documentation in connection with the report recommendations.

The Mayor made some preliminary remarks on the proposals, outlining the

engagement he and Councillor Bell had undertaken with local people who had

misgivings about the scheme.

The recommendations were then promoted by Councillor Bell who referred to

a petition objecting to the proposals which was tabled at the meeting.

The Executive Director for Customer Services representative added that an

addendum paper had also been tabled which clarified the stance taken by the

Mayor of London on the issue of balloting local residents affected by

regeneration proposals.

The Cabinet was next jointly addressed by local residents Pauline Wamunyu

and Diann Gerson who urged the Cabinet not to break up the community and

retain the existing building.

Councillor Liam Curran, Chair of the Sustainable Development Select

Committee, backed the residents pleas and asked for the full consideration of

alternative views and a ballot of residents.

Councillors Bell, Dromey and Dacres all expressed their views on the

proposals, noting the residents concerns but pointing out the length of the

existing Housing waiting list in Lewisham and the numbers of homeless

people. They concluded that the guarantee of a lifetime tenancy in the new

development at existing rent levels was fair. The Mayor agreed with their

conclusions and pointed out manifesto commitments to reduce waiting lists

and tackle homelessness. He assured local residents that engagement with

them would continue and that they would be central to any new development.

Having considered an officer report and presentations by the Cabinet Member

for Housing, Councillor Paul Bell, two members of the public from Reginald

Road and the Chair of the Sustainable Development Select Committee,

Councillor Liam Curran, the Mayor and Cabinet, for the reasons stated

and as set out in the report:

RESOLVED by 9 votes to zero that:

(1) the update on the Deptford Southern Housing Sites project, as detailed

in section 5 be noted;

(2) the Development Agreement be varied to extend the longstop date to 30

June 2019; and

(3) authority be delegated to the Executive Director for Resources &

Regeneration, in consultation with the Executive Director for Customer

Services and the Head of Law, to negotiate and agree the necessary legal

documentation in connection with the report recommendations.